BACKGROUND: Anaplasma platys is a bacterium parasitic in the canine platelets, representing the causative agent of canine cyclic thrombocytopenia, with a worldwide distribution, mainly in tropical countries. The agent has zoonotic potential, being reported in several human clinical cases. The suspected vector is the tick Rhipicephalus sanguineus (sensu lato), widely distributed in animals and humans in the tropical regions of South America, Africa, Asia and Australia, but also in southern Europe. Only few scattered data concerning the epidemiology of A. platys in sub-Saharan Africa are available. The aim of our study was to evaluate the epidemiological status of A. platys in dogs and cats from rural communities in eastern and western Africa, where dogs and their ticks live in close contact with humans. METHODS: A total of 216 canine and 22 feline blood samples and ticks feeding on them were collected in 2013 and 2014 from eight localities in Ivory Coast and four localities in Kenya. PCR was performed using specific primers targeting a portion of the 16S rRNA gene, followed by sequencing. RESULTS: The main results highlight the high prevalence of A. platys infection in dogs in both Eastern and Western Africa and report it for the first time in Eastern Africa and in Rhipicephalus camicasi. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of A. platys DNA in R. camicasi feeding on negative hosts together with the relatively high prevalence of A. platys, correlated with the absence of the probable vector Rhipicephalus sanguineus (s.l.) in Kenyan Island suggest the involvement of other tick species in the transmission of A. platys.

CEITEC VFU University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno Czech Republic

Department of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj Napoca Cluj Napoca Romania

Department of Pathology and Parasitology Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno Czech Republic

Department of Veterinary Pathology Microbiology and Parasitology Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Nairobi Nairobi Kenya

Institute of Parasitology Biology Centre of Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic České Budějovice Czech Republic

Unité de Formation et de Recherche Biosciences Université de Cocody Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire

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