Bacteria of the genus Anaplasma – characteristics of Anaplasma and their vectors: a review

Abstract

Over recent years, there has been a growing interest in bacteria from the genus <I>Anaplasma</I>, especially the species <I>A. marginale, A. ovis</I> and <I>A. phagocytophilum</I>. It is connected with the pathogenic activity of these bacteria in farm animals, and also, though to a lesser degree, in humans. Anaplasmosis, a disease caused by various species of anaplasma, is an especially important issue for animal breeders. The main vectors of the <I>Anaplasma</I> bacteria are ticks, common arachnida occurring everywhere in the world, especially the genera <I>Ixodes, Dermacentor, Rhipicephalus</I> and<I> Amblyomma</I>. The genus <I>Anaplasma</I> includes obligate intracellular bacteria, parasitizing in the vacuoles of cells in eukaryotic hosts. <I>A. marginale, A. centrale, A. ovis and<I>A. bovis</I> are obligate intracellular bacteria parasitizing in erythrocytes and monocytes of higher vertebrates, mostly ruminants. <I> A. platys</I> is mainly a pathogen of canines (displaying tropism to thrombocytes) and the species <I>A. phagocytophilum</I> (displaying tropism to granulocytes) is pathogenic to people and domestic animals. In this paper we present characteristics and differentiation of six species of the genus <I>Anaplasma</I> and their vectors in the world.