Metagenomic detection and characterization of RNA viruses associated with Rhipicephalus linnaei (Audouin, 1826) ticks from the Amazon, Pará, Brazil.

In recent years, tick-borne viruses (TBVs) have gained significant prominence in public and veterinary health due to reports of fatal cases associated with vertebrates and the identification of a wide diversity of viruses in ixodid ticks through molecular techniques, particularly high-throughput sequencing. This study aims to investigate RNA viruses in Rhipicephalus linnaei ticks from two distinct regions of the state of Pará, in the Amazon, using a metagenomic approach. Specimens of Rhipicephalus linnaei were confirmed based on the COXI gene of their mitochondrial genome. We report the first record of Brown dog tick mivirus 1 (Mivirus rhipicephali; Family Chuviridae) and Brown dog tick phlebovirus 2 (Uukuvirus tobagoense; Family Phenuiviridae) in Brazil, as well as partial fragments of Uukuvirus tobagoense, Castanhal tick orthomyxovirus (Family Orthomyxoviridae), Guangdong tick quaranjavirus (Family Orthomyxoviridae), Alpharicinrhavirus taishun (Family Rhabdoviridae) and Zhangye Rhabd tick virus 1 (Family Rhabdoviridae). This research identified viruses with potential relevance to public and animal health and expands knowledge about the geographic distribution of viruses in tick populations, especially species of vector importance. In this context, studies on ixodid populations are essential to elucidate viral ecology, identify potential emerging agents and assess risks to public and animal health, contributing to the improvement of disease surveillance and prevention strategies.