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Babesia are intraerythocytic parasites that are most commonly transmitted by ticks. Although more than 100 species of Babesia have been identified, few have been found to cause human disease. In China, increasing numbers of babesiosis cases have been reported during the last decade.
To better understand the epidemiology of babesiosis in China, researchers collected 1732 ticks between May and July 2014 from a forested region in northeastern China. Tick infection was established by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) employing primers directed against the 18S rRNA of Babesia using DNA extracted from the ticks. This method identified infection in 15 ticks (0.9%). In six instances, the nucleotide sequences were identical to B. venatorum, the most co…