Abstract:
This study aimed to identify tick species and to
determine their relationship with the Theileria parva seroprevalence
in cattle raised under an extensive farming system
in North Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo
in two agro-ecological zones namely medium (1,000–
1,850 m) and high (>1,850 m) altitude. Among the 3,215
ticks collected on 482 animals, from February to April 2009, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus (64.26 %), the main vector of
T. parva, was the most abundant species followed by
Rhipicephalus decoloratus (35.49 %) and Amblyomma variegatum
(0.25 %). The mean burden of R. appendiculatus
tick per infested animal appeared significantly higher at
medium (6.5±0.22 ticks) than at high (0.07±0.3 ticks) altitude
(P<0.05). However, an indirect fluorescent antibody
test carried out on 450 blood samples revealed a global T.
parva seroprevalence of 43 % (95 % CI: 38–47) which was
not significantly (P>0.05) different between medium
(48.4 %; 95 % CI: 38–49) and high (41.9 %; 95 % CI:
35–49) altitude. These relatively low seroprevalences suggest
that there is a state of endemicity to T. parva infection
in the study area. The presence of the tick vector on animals
was associated with an increased risk of being seropositive
to T. parva infection (odds ratio02.04; 95 % CI: 1.8–2.3; P
<0.001). The results suggest the need for a longitudinal
study to investigate the seasonal dynamics of tick species
and T. parva infection. The rate of tick infection should also
be evaluated in order to determine the intensity of T. parva
transmission to cattle.
