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Preferences of different tick species for human hosts in Turkey

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Abstract

The ticks removed from the patients who applied to the hospitals in Istanbul and neighboring cities, Turkey, with the complaint of tick bite were examined in this study, on account of their species, biological stages, attachment sites on the body, and the age of the affected patients. A total of 16,969 ticks were identified. Encountered species were as follows: 33.6 % Ixodes spp. immature, 25.3 % Hyalomma spp. immature, 24.3 % I. ricinus, 9.5 % Rhipicephalus sanguineus gr., 3.2 % R. bursa, 2.2 % Hyalomma marginatum, 1.96 % Haemaphysalis adults, 1.66 % Hyalomma aegyptium, 0.52 % Dermacentor marginatus, 0.39 % Rhipicephalus spp. nymphs, 0.12 % Dermacentor spp. nymphs, 0.11 % Haemaphysalis spp. nymphs, 0.09 % Hyalomma scupense, and 0.03 % Hyalomma excavatum. The distribution of attachment sites of the species and instars showed significant differences. Furthermore, age data of the patients also revealed that certain tick species were more common within certain age groups.

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Acknowledgments

Authors would like to thank to Ministry of Health, Branches of Istanbul, Tekirdağ, Edirne, Sakarya and Kocaeli provincial Head Offices for facilitating the sample collection, and to the staff of the hospitals in these provinces for their help in sample collection and preservation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Namik Kemal University, Tekirdag, Turkey

    S. Kar

  2. Dermatology Clinic, Ministry of Health Haseki Research and Education Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey

    E. Dervis & A. Akın

  3. Department of Infectious Diseases, Koc University School of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey

    O. Ergonul

  4. Faculty of Health Sciences, Marmara University, Istanbul, Turkey

    A. Gargili

  5. Galveston National Laboratory, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

    A. Gargili

  6. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

    A. Gargili

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  1. S. Kar
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  2. E. Dervis
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  3. A. Akın
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  4. O. Ergonul
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  5. A. Gargili
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Correspondence to A. Gargili.

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Kar, S., Dervis, E., Akın, A. et al. Preferences of different tick species for human hosts in Turkey. Exp Appl Acarol 61, 349–355 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-013-9698-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-013-9698-2

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