Coinfection with four genera of bacteria (Borrelia, Bartonella, Anaplasma, and Ehrlichia) in Haemaphysalis longicornis and Ixodes sinensis ticks from China.

We studied coinfection with four genera of bacteria--Borrelia, Bartonella, Anaplasma, and Ehrlichia--in ticks collected between December 2005 and November 2006 from Zhejiang Province and Liaoning Province. Four hundred fifty Haemaphysalis longicornis and 86 Ixodes sinensis ticks were collected and divided into 236 groups. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or nested PCR was used to detect the bacteria. The amplicons were sequenced and compared to published sequences. Phylogenic analysis was performed with MEGA3.1 and the data were analyzed using SPSS 11.0. Borrelia, Bartonella, Anaplasma, and Ehrlichia positive rates were 30.1% (71/236), 28.8% (68/236), 1.3% (3/236), and 0.8% (2/236), respectively. One tick was coinfected with all four bacteria (Borrelia, Bartonella, Anaplasma, and Ehrlichia) and another group was coinfected with three bacteria, Borrelia, Bartonella, and Ehrlichia. Statistical analysis showed most coinfections were significant, indicating that once a tick was infected with one bacteria, there was a greater chance to be infected with another bacteria.