Molecular detection and characterization of tick-borne parasites in goats and ticks from Thailand

Ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TTBPs) pose a serious economic threat to ruminant production worldwide. Despite this, investigations focused on goats remain limited compared to those for pathogens infecting cattle. We carried out PCR-based surveys and phylogenetic analyses to examine TTBPs from 6 provinces in Thailand between January 2016 and June 2020. A total of 93 tick samples were collected as well as 969 blood samples from goats. All ticks were morphologically identified as Rhipicephalus microplus and confirmed for species based on 16S rRNA and cox1 gene sequences. The mitochondrial cox1 sequences in the present study were clustered into clades A and C. The overall infection rates of Anaplasma spp., piroplasmids, and co-infections of both parasites in goats were 13.5% (131/969), 2.7% (24/880), and 0.7% (7/969), respectively. We observed no statistically significant association between TTBP infections and age or sex. However, TTBP infections and the rainy season were linked (p < 0.05). Anaplasma bovis, Anaplasma marginale, and Anaplasma ovis were detected for the first time in goats in the country using primers targeting the chaperonin GroEL (groEL), major surface protein 2 (msp2), and major surface protein 4 (msp4) genes, while Anaplasma capra and Anaplasma phagocytophilum were not detected. Anaplasma bovis, A. marginale, and A. ovis isolates were clustered in a subclade that differed from the strains found in other countries. Among piroplasmids, only Theileria luwenshuni was detected in the current investigation. This work will add to the current understanding regarding the prevalence, genetic diversity, and genetic relationships of A. bovis, A. marginale, A. ovis, and T. luwenshuni among global isolates and those in Thailand.