An Update of Evidence for Pathogen Transmission by Ticks of the Genus Hyalomma
Sarah Bonnet, Stéphane Bertagnoli, Alessandra Falchi, Julie Figoni, Johanna Fite, Thierry Hoch, Elsa Quillery, Sara Moutailler, A. Raffetin, Magalie René‐Martellet, Gwenaël Vourc’h, Laurence Vial
Abstract
Current and likely future changes in the geographic distribution of ticks belonging to the genus Hyalomma are of concern, as these ticks are believed to be vectors of many pathogens responsible for human and animal diseases. However, we have observed that for many pathogens there are no vector competence experiments, and that the level of evidence provided by the scientific literature is often not sufficient to validate the transmission of a specific pathogen by a specific Hyalomma species. We therefore carried out a bibliographical study to collate the validation evidence for the transmission of parasitic, viral, or bacterial pathogens by Hyalomma spp. ticks. Our results show that there are very few validated cases of pathogen transmission by Hyalomma tick species.