Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation
Globally, zoonotic vector-borne diseases are on the rise and understanding their complex transmission cycles is pertinent to mitigating disease risk. In North America, Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease and is caused by transmission of <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-01-01
|
| Series: | Veterinary Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/9/2/55 |
| _version_ | 1797476041507209216 |
|---|---|
| author | Marie Lilly Wilmer Amaya-Mejia Lucas Pavan Ceili Peng Arielle Crews Nghia Tran Ravinder Sehgal Andrea Swei |
| author_facet | Marie Lilly Wilmer Amaya-Mejia Lucas Pavan Ceili Peng Arielle Crews Nghia Tran Ravinder Sehgal Andrea Swei |
| author_sort | Marie Lilly |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Globally, zoonotic vector-borne diseases are on the rise and understanding their complex transmission cycles is pertinent to mitigating disease risk. In North America, Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease and is caused by transmission of <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> sensu lato (s.l.) from <i>Ixodes</i> spp. ticks to a diverse group of vertebrate hosts. Small mammal reservoir hosts are primarily responsible for maintenance of <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. across the United States. Nevertheless, birds can also be parasitized by ticks and are capable of infection with <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. but their role in <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. transmission dynamics is understudied. Birds could be important in both the maintenance and spread of <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. and ticks because of their high mobility and shared habitat with important mammalian reservoir hosts. This study aims to better understand the role of avian hosts in tick-borne zoonotic disease transmission cycles in the western United States. We surveyed birds, mammals, and ticks at nine sites in northern California for <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. infection and collected data on other metrics of host community composition such as abundance and diversity of birds, small mammals, lizards, predators, and ticks. We found 22.8% of birds infected with <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. and that the likelihood of avian <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. infection was significantly associated with local host community composition and pathogen prevalence in California. Additionally, we found an average tick burden of 0.22 ticks per bird across all species. Predator and lizard abundances were significant predictors of avian tick infestation. These results indicate that birds are relevant hosts in the local <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. transmission cycle in the western United States and quantifying their role in the spread and maintenance of Lyme disease requires further research. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:53:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2227a04c330b4bcf93211feb0b1ad7a6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2306-7381 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:53:15Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Veterinary Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-2227a04c330b4bcf93211feb0b1ad7a62023-11-23T22:27:55ZengMDPI AGVeterinary Sciences2306-73812022-01-01925510.3390/vetsci9020055Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick InfestationMarie Lilly0Wilmer Amaya-Mejia1Lucas Pavan2Ceili Peng3Arielle Crews4Nghia Tran5Ravinder Sehgal6Andrea Swei7Department of Biology, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco, CA 94132, USADepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, 612 Charles E. Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USADepartment of Biology, Stanford University, 371 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA 94305, USADepartment of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 31 Ames St., Cambridge, MA 02142, USASan Mateo County Mosquito and Vector Control District, 1351 Rollins Road, Burlingame, CA 94010, USADepartment of Biology, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco, CA 94132, USADepartment of Biology, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco, CA 94132, USADepartment of Biology, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco, CA 94132, USAGlobally, zoonotic vector-borne diseases are on the rise and understanding their complex transmission cycles is pertinent to mitigating disease risk. In North America, Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease and is caused by transmission of <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> sensu lato (s.l.) from <i>Ixodes</i> spp. ticks to a diverse group of vertebrate hosts. Small mammal reservoir hosts are primarily responsible for maintenance of <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. across the United States. Nevertheless, birds can also be parasitized by ticks and are capable of infection with <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. but their role in <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. transmission dynamics is understudied. Birds could be important in both the maintenance and spread of <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. and ticks because of their high mobility and shared habitat with important mammalian reservoir hosts. This study aims to better understand the role of avian hosts in tick-borne zoonotic disease transmission cycles in the western United States. We surveyed birds, mammals, and ticks at nine sites in northern California for <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. infection and collected data on other metrics of host community composition such as abundance and diversity of birds, small mammals, lizards, predators, and ticks. We found 22.8% of birds infected with <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. and that the likelihood of avian <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. infection was significantly associated with local host community composition and pathogen prevalence in California. Additionally, we found an average tick burden of 0.22 ticks per bird across all species. Predator and lizard abundances were significant predictors of avian tick infestation. These results indicate that birds are relevant hosts in the local <i>B. burgdorferi</i> s.l. transmission cycle in the western United States and quantifying their role in the spread and maintenance of Lyme disease requires further research.https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/9/2/55disease ecologycommunity ecologyavian hostsLyme disease<i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> |
| spellingShingle | Marie Lilly Wilmer Amaya-Mejia Lucas Pavan Ceili Peng Arielle Crews Nghia Tran Ravinder Sehgal Andrea Swei Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation Veterinary Sciences disease ecology community ecology avian hosts Lyme disease <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> |
| title | Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation |
| title_full | Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation |
| title_fullStr | Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation |
| title_short | Local Community Composition Drives Avian <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> Infection and Tick Infestation |
| title_sort | local community composition drives avian i borrelia burgdorferi i infection and tick infestation |
| topic | disease ecology community ecology avian hosts Lyme disease <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/9/2/55 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marielilly localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT wilmeramayamejia localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT lucaspavan localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT ceilipeng localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT ariellecrews localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT nghiatran localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT ravindersehgal localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation AT andreaswei localcommunitycompositiondrivesavianiborreliaburgdorferiiinfectionandtickinfestation |