Molecular detection of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in Ixodid ticks in Hebei Province, China.

A total of 3696 Ixodid ticks, collected from Hebei Province, China, were examined by a nested polymerase chain reaction for the presence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum. Forty-three (15.4%) of 280 pools tested, including 39 (14.6%) of 267 Haemaphysalis longicornis and four (30.8%) of 13 Dermacentor nuttalli, were positive, but no significant difference was found between D. nuttalli and H. longicornis (p > 0.05). Sequence and phylogenetic analyses of 16S rRNA gene indicated that A. phagocytophilum in China is genetically diverse. To our knowledge, this is the first evidence of A. phagocytophilum in ticks from Hebei Province, China, and the first documentation of Anaplasma infection in D. nuttalli.