The bacterial diversity and potential pathogenic risks of giant panda-infesting ticks
Importance: The emergence of tick-borne bacterial diseases poses a serious threat to the population health of wild-living giant pandas. Ticks are obligate hematophagous ectoparasites that survive by feeding on the blood of various animal hosts and spreading pathogens. Although some previous studies have confirmed that wild ticks carried various viruses, the role of wild giant panda-infesting ticks in the bacterial community remains unknown. Here, the identification of the microbial community and antibiotic resistome in giant panda-infesting ticks revealed that most <i>Ixodes ovatus</i> ticks are potentially pathogenic symbionts, including <i>Anaplasma phagocytophilum</i>, <i>Coxiella burnetii</i>, and <i>Rickettsia amblyommatis</i>. Tick-borne disease control also needs to take into account the effects of season, sex, and antibiotic efflux resistance genes. Our findings highlight the contribution of the scientific management of tick-borne diseases in the giant panda population.
Authors
- Chong Huang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0392-9398)
- Jiandong Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6418-0237)
- Rong Hou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8236-6318)
- Dunwu Qi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9557-4194)
- Xinqiang Song (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9818-2493)
- Zusheng Li
- Yanshan Zhou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-1131-0989)
- Wei Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3559-1974)
- Wenlei Bi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-6590-9123)
- Guanwei Lan
- Yi Shi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0121-2908)
- Jiabin Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2529-248X)
- Mingxia Fu
- Long Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8139-0474)
- Hong Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1243-5944)
- Yu Xiang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4955-2899)
- Fei Xue (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8563-6793)
- Jiang Gu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8035-4551)
- Rui Ma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-6191-2159)
- Feifei Feng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0865-9921)
- Chao Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-8483-3743)
- Haijun Gu
Institutions
- Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding (CN)
- Sichuan Agricultural University (CN)
- Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve (CN)
- Sichuan Academy of Forestry (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Microbiology Spectrum
- Published
- 2025-06-11
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.02197-24
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Vector-borne infectious diseases
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.05
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Research Foundation
- Chengdu Science and Technology Bureau