Dogs as Reservoirs for Leishmania braziliensis

based on the consideration that R. aeschlimannii is usually found in ticks of the genus Hyalomma, primarily in H. marginatum (1). Therefore, 1 of the PCRs amplifi ed a fragment of the Hyalomma tick mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene and the other a fragment of the internal transcribed spacer 2 (7). The ITS2 fragment displayed the highest (99%) similarity with the respective fragment of H. marginatum, H. dromedarii, H. truncatum, and H. lusitanicum. Cytochrome oxidase subunit I fragment was 99% identical to H. marginatum, H. dromedarii, and H. truncatum. The 16S RNA fragment was 98% identical to H. marginatum; its identity to the second closest sequence belonging to H. lusitanicum was 96%. Earlier, R. aeschlimannii had been detected in sub-Saharan and North Africa, southern Europe, and southwestern Russia (8). Therefore, the area of Zerbst, the middle of Germany, marks the northernmost point of R. aeschlimannii detection. Hyalomma spp. ticks are distributed in Africa, the Mediterranean climatic zone of southern Europe, and in Asia. The only documented Hyalomma spp. tick in Germany was found on a human in the southern part of the country (Lake Constance area) in May 2006, but the possibility of tick transportation from Spain was not ruled out (9). Acrocephalus scirpaceus birds are migratory birds and live in central Europe from April to October and winter in sub-Saharan Africa in the region inhabited by Hyalomma spp. ticks. Therefore, it is reasonable to suggest that the Hyalomma spp. ticks that we examined had been transported by the birds from Africa. The fact that a randomly caught bird was infested with R. aeshlimannii –infected ticks is suggestive of the intensive stream of new pathogens transported through Europe by migrating birds. The fi rst possible implication of a bird as a vector of infected ticks was proposed for Hyalomma spp. ticks infected by R. sibirica mongolitimonae (10). Until now, the role of migrating birds in distribution of tick-borne pathogens has been poorly understood (9). The changing climate and environment in central Europe may facilitate the establishment of pathogen-carrying tick species transported by birds. These new pathogens can be directly transmitted from infected birds to the species of the local fauna.