First detection of Babesia ovis in Dermacentor spp in Ardabil area, northwest of Iran

Background & objectives: Babesia is an intraerythrocytic protozoan parasite which is transmitted by hard ticks of the Ixodidae family. One of the problems associated with protozoan infection is the determination and characterization of the vectors. The aim of the present study was to detect Babesia ovis in the salivary gland of Dermacentor spp. Methods: A total of 200 adult Dermacentor ticks (139 D. niveus and 61 D. marginatus) were collected from sheep suspected to be infected with babesiosis in the Ardabil region of Iran from April to September 2015 (active season of ticks); and were identified using standard taxonomic keys. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was isolated from the salivary glands of ticks and analyzed with the primers derived from the hyper variable V4 region of 18S ribosomal ribonucleic acid (18S rRNA) of the Babesia species using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: Babesia ovis was detected in 5.8% of the D. niveus and 3.3% of the D. marginatus positive samples in the second round of semi-nested PCR. Interpretation & conclusion: Based on the results obtained from this study, it is concluded that D. niveus and D. marginatus, which are distributed in Ardabil region of Iran, might play a major role in the transmission of infection as a natural vector of B. ovis.