Nationwide surveillance, mitochondrial genetic diversity, and associated microorganisms of Lipoptena fortisetosa collected from cervids in the Republic of Korea.
- 1Foreign Animal Disease Division, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 39660, Republic of Korea.
Abstract
Background
Deer keds are blood-feeding ectoparasites of cervids and can carry diverse microorganisms of veterinary or potential zoonotic relevance. Nationwide information on their distribution, mitochondrial diversity, and associated microorganisms has been lacking in the Republic of Korea (ROK). This study investigated deer keds collected from cervids across the ROK and characterized their species identity, COX1 diversity, and sequence-confirmed microorganisms.Methods
A total of 405 deer keds were opportunistically collected from 116 cervids made available through ongoing regional wildlife management activities across nine provinces of the Republic of Korea, including Korean water deer (Hydropotes inermis) on the mainland and Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus) on Jeju Island. All 405 specimens were examined morphologically, and 186 were analyzed using cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COX1) sequencing for molecular confirmation and population-genetic analysis. Selected viral, bacterial, and protozoan microorganisms were screened using pooled qPCR/qRT-PCR or conventional PCR, followed by individual conventional PCR and Sanger sequencing for confirmation. Host-level clustering was evaluated using binomial generalized linear mixed models when sufficient confirmed detections were available.Results
All 405 deer keds were identified morphologically as Lipoptena fortisetosa, and all 186 COX1-sequenced specimens were molecularly consistent with this identification. The 617-bp COX1 dataset comprised 29 haplotypes (Hd = 0.681 ± 0.038; π = 0.01262 ± 0.00101). AMOVA showed significant mitochondrial differentiation between Jeju Island and mainland samples (ΦST = 0.615, P < 0.001), although host species and geography were completely confounded. Sequence-confirmed microorganisms included Bartonella spp. in 94/405 deer keds (23.21%), Theileria spp. in 40/405 (9.88%), Coxiella-like organisms in 4/405 (0.99%), and Anaplasma capra in 2/405 (0.49%). No sequence-confirmed Babesia spp., Ehrlichia spp., Borrelia spp., Hepatozoon spp., or SFTSV were obtained. Bartonella detection showed very strong host-level clustering and a marked Jeju-mainland contrast, whereas Theileria detection did not differ significantly between regions after accounting for host clustering.Conclusions
Lipoptena fortisetosa was widely associated with the cervids examined across the ROK and showed substantial mitochondrial genetic structure between the sampled Jeju and mainland groups. Bartonella spp. were the most frequently sequence-confirmed microorganisms, followed by Theileria spp. Molecular detection alone does not establish vector competence, and the geographic and host-species effects in the present sampling design cannot be separated. Standardized longitudinal sampling and host-vector-microorganism interaction studies are required to clarify transmission ecology and population structure.
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BibTeX
@article{jeong2026nationwide,
title = {{Nationwide surveillance, mitochondrial genetic diversity, and associated microorganisms of Lipoptena fortisetosa collected from cervids in the Republic of Korea.}},
author = {Jong-Uk Jeong and Jeong-Min Kim and Hae-Eun Kang and SeEun Choe},
journal = {International journal for parasitology. Parasites and wildlife},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.ijppaw.2026.101304},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42920978},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Nationwide surveillance, mitochondrial genetic diversity, and associated microorganisms of Lipoptena fortisetosa collected from cervids in the Republic of Korea.
AU - Jong-Uk Jeong
AU - Jeong-Min Kim
AU - Hae-Eun Kang
AU - SeEun Choe
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/15
JO - International journal for parasitology. Parasites and wildlife
DO - 10.1016/j.ijppaw.2026.101304
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42920978
AB - Background Deer keds are blood-feeding ectoparasites of cervids and can carry diverse microorganisms of veterinary or potential zoonotic relevance. Nationwide information on their distribution, mitochondrial diversity, and associated microorganisms has been lacking in the Republic of Korea (ROK). This study investigated deer keds collected from cervids across the ROK and characterized their species identity, COX1 diversity, and sequence-confirmed microorganisms.Methods A total of 405 deer keds were opportunistically collected from 116 cervids made available through ongoing regional wildlife management activities across nine provinces of the Republic of Korea, including Korean water deer (Hydropotes inermis) on the mainland and Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus) on Jeju Island. All 405 specimens were examined morphologically, and 186 were analyzed using cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COX1) sequencing for molecular confirmation and population-genetic analysis. Selected viral, bacterial, and protozoan microorganisms were screened using pooled qPCR/qRT-PCR or conventional PCR, followed by individual conventional PCR and Sanger sequencing for confirmation. Host-level clustering was evaluated using binomial generalized linear mixed models when sufficient confirmed detections were available.Results All 405 deer keds were identified morphologically as Lipoptena fortisetosa, and all 186 COX1-sequenced specimens were molecularly consistent with this identification. The 617-bp COX1 dataset comprised 29 haplotypes (Hd = 0.681 ± 0.038; π = 0.01262 ± 0.00101). AMOVA showed significant mitochondrial differentiation between Jeju Island and mainland samples (ΦST = 0.615, P < 0.001), although host species and geography were completely confounded. Sequence-confirmed microorganisms included Bartonella spp. in 94/405 deer keds (23.21%), Theileria spp. in 40/405 (9.88%), Coxiella-like organisms in 4/405 (0.99%), and Anaplasma capra in 2/405 (0.49%). No sequence-confirmed Babesia spp., Ehrlichia spp., Borrelia spp., Hepatozoon spp., or SFTSV were obtained. Bartonella detection showed very strong host-level clustering and a marked Jeju-mainland contrast, whereas Theileria detection did not differ significantly between regions after accounting for host clustering.Conclusions Lipoptena fortisetosa was widely associated with the cervids examined across the ROK and showed substantial mitochondrial genetic structure between the sampled Jeju and mainland groups. Bartonella spp. were the most frequently sequence-confirmed microorganisms, followed by Theileria spp. Molecular detection alone does not establish vector competence, and the geographic and host-species effects in the present sampling design cannot be separated. Standardized longitudinal sampling and host-vector-microorganism interaction studies are required to clarify transmission ecology and population structure.
SN - 2213-2244
ER -