We evaluated human risk for infection with Babesia microti at a site in eastern Switzerland where several B. microti-infected nymphal Ixodes ricinus ticks had been found. DNA from pooled nymphal ticks amplified by polymerase chain reaction was highly homologous to published B. microti sequences. More ticks carried babesial infection in the lower portion of the rectangular 0.7-ha grid than in th...

The taxonomy of the order Piroplasmida, which includes a number of clinically and economically relevant organisms, is a hotly debated topic amongst parasitologists. Three genera (Babesia, Theileria, and Cytauxzoon) are recognized based on parasite life cycle characteristics, but molecular phylogenetic analyses of 18S sequences have suggested the presence of five or more distinct Piroplasmida li...

BACKGROUND Babesiosis is an emerging health risk in several parts of the world. However, little is known about the prevalence of Babesia in malaria-endemic countries. The area along the China-Myanmar border in Yunnan is a main endemic area of malaria in P.R. China, however, human infection with Babesia microti (B. microti) is not recognized in this region, and its profile of co-infection is not...

Figure 1. Wright Giemsa-stained thin prep peripheral blood smears (original magnification, ϫ1000) demonstrating appliqué (B) and headphone (C) morphologies, which are characteristic of Plasmodium falciparum, and extracellular ring forms (D), which are characteristic of Babesia microti. Diagnosis: Babesiosis due to Babesia microti infection from a tick bite. Peripheral blood smear from the state...

Human infection by Babesia microti has been recognized as an emerging zoonosis with important public health implications worldwide. In Europe the reported cases of human babesiosis have been attributed mostly to B. divergens infection, with only sporadic cases of the disease caused by B. microti or B. venatorum. This study, based on molecular methods (PCR, R-T PCR, DNA sequencing and phylogenet...

Babesiosis, due to infection by a tick-borne protozoan (predominantly Babesia microti in North America), is an emerging health risk that is expanding into new areas and may be unfamiliar to clinicians in locations not previously considered endemic. Manifestations of infection can range from asymptomatic to life threatening, with severe disease more likely in those who have had a splenectomy, ar...

The purpose of this study was to specify the occurrence and prevalence of Babesia microti in hard ticks removed from dogs in Warsaw (central Poland). Among 590 collected ticks, 209 were identified as Ixodes ricinus, and 381 as Dermacentor reticulatus. B. microti DNA was detected in 11 out of 590 (1.86%) samples of ticks. The DNA of the parasite was detected only in lysates from female I. ricinu...

OBJECTIVES The aim of this clinical assessment was to ascertain whether a 70-year-old Canadian patient, who had no history of out-of-country travel, had contracted a Babesia infection. METHODS The adult human male developed constitutional symptoms, which included sweats, chills, and immobilizing fatigue, and was screened for human babesiosis. Subsequent testing included a complete Babesia pan...

BACKGROUND Babesiosis is a zoonotic disease transmitted by the Ixodes tick species. Infection often results in sub-clinical manifestations; however, patients with this disease can become critically ill. Splenic rupture has been a previously reported complication of babesiosis, but treatment has always led to splenectomy. Asplenia places a patient at greater risk for overwhelming post-splenectom...