Occurrence of ixodic ticks with exoskeleton anomalies and their infection with tick-borne encephalitis in Altai Republic

Abstract

Spreading of ixodic ticks with exoskeleton anomalies in different regions of Altai Republic is studied. Work was carried out at the Center for Hygiene and Epi- demiology of Altai Republic. Ixodic ticks were collected from plants on a fabric and then on a wet unsterile bandage in the period of their seasonal activity in natu- ral biotops. Ticks morphology is studied using a stereoscopic binocular microscope MBS-10. Immunoenzyme analysis was applied to estimate the invasion with tick- bone encephalitis of ticks. Phenotypic polymorphism of male and female ixodic ticks of dominant species I. persulcatus, D. nuttalli, D. reticulatus, D. silvarum, H. concinna is studied. Malformations are more often expressed in ticks Ixodes per- sulcatus (20,4 % of ticks are abnormal) than in ticks Dermacentor (4,3 %) and Haemaphysalis concinna (1,6 %). Percentage of infected abnormal ticks was lower than of ixodes without exoskeleton anomalies.