Isolation of Coxiella burnetii, Francisella tularensis, Leptospira, and Borrelia species from the blood and ticks of sheep and goats in Sistan.

Zoonoses are communicable diseases transmitted from

animals

to humans. More than 60% of human infectious diseases are caused by pathogens shared with wild or domestic

animals

. Emerging zoonoses are a growing threat to global health. Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most prevalent tick-borne zoonosis in the northern hemisphere including Slovakia. It is caused by spirochetes belonging to the Borrelia burgdorferi (

B

.

b

.)sensu lato (s.l.) complex which are transmitted by ticks .

B

.afzelii and

B

. garinii are the most common European

circulatinggenospecies

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circulating genospecies

The routine diagnosis of borreliosis in humans is based on the determination of the levels of specific

antibodies

using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). If

the first step is

reactive, immunoblotting is performed to confirm it. IgG

antibodies

appear in serum 6 weeks after the infection, they reach their peak level after 4 to 6 months and are detectable in serum for many years. Tularaemia (TUL),

also

known as “rabbit fever”, is a zoonosis caused by a gram-negative bacterium Francisella (F.) tularensis. TUL is typically found in

animals

, especially rodents, rabbits, and hares, it is usually a rural disease. F. tularensis is divided into four subspecies: tularensis, mediasiatica, holarctica, and novicida. The bacterium can be transmitted by an arthropod bite, ingestion, inhalation, or direct contact with infected tissues. The screening assay ELISA and

then

the Western blot (WB) have been established in recent years for the identification of tularaemia

antibodies

.

Antibodies

appear around 2 to 3 weeks after infection and

antibodies

may be detected years after the patient’s cure. Leptospirosis (LEP) is a zoonosis found worldwide, the main reservoir of which is the rat. The genus Leptospira includes 20 Leptospira (L.) species and more than 300 serovars. Humans become infected most commonly through occupational, recreational or domestic contact of skin with the urine of infected

animals

, either directly or via contaminated water or soil (10). The number of severe human cases worldwide is estimated above 500,000. Incidences range from 0.1–1/100,000 per year in temperate climates, 10–100/100,000 per year in the humid tropic climate, to over 100/100,000 per year during outbreaks and in high-exposure risk groups. ELISA and microscopic agglutination are generally used laboratory methods (11). The only proof of asymptomatic infection is specific anti-Leptospira

antibodies

.

Thus

, the serological response rate of the examined population to Leptospira antigen may be regarded as an indicator of the prior contact with these bacteria and the degree of exposure. Missing epidemiological data in endemic countries

complicate

Correct subject-verb agreement

complicates

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an appropriate risk assessment necessary for the public health authorities. Our objectives were

also

to conduct a pilot survey on a selected sample of healthy blood donors in Eastern Slovakia to assess the seroprevalence of three selected zoonotic diseases and to identify potential risk factors for blood recipients