{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,5]],"date-time":"2026-10-05T21:01:10Z","timestamp":1791234070247,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":54,"publisher":"Zoological Society of Japan","issue":"5","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Zoological Science"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,9]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Rodents play a central role as reservoirs of zoonotic pathogens, yet the ecological and meteorological factors affecting pathogen prevalence remain unclear. In this study, a meta-analysis was used to evaluate the influence of host species and meteorological factors on the prevalence of Babesia microti in two common Japanese field mice, Apodemus speciosus and A. argenteus. The data were collected from seven published studies conducted across Japan. To examine the effects of total annual precipitation, average annual temperature, and host species, generalized linear mixed models were employed. The prevalence of the Hobetsu\/Otsu-type B. microti was significantly higher in A. speciosus than in A. argenteus, indicating possible differences in reservoir competence and vector preference by Ixodes ovatus, which mainly infests terrestrial rodents. Conversely, the prevalence of the Kobe-type B. microti showed no significant differences between host species; however, it was negatively correlated with increasing precipitation. These findings suggest that meteorological factors may reflect a behavioral mismatch between the tick vectors, Haemaphysalis longicornis and Ixodes nipponensis, and their Apodemus hosts. One possible explanation for these results is that the vectors for Kobe-type B. microti, such as H. longicornis and I. nipponensis, primarily quest on vegetation, and the frequency of host-vector contact decreases when rodents remain in their burrows during heavy rain. This study provides the first quantitative evidence of host-environment interactions impacting rodent-borne babesiosis in Japan. It underscores the importance of considering meteorological and ecological perspectives when forecasting tick-borne disease risks in the context of climate change.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.2108\/zs250107","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,14]],"date-time":"2026-07-14T22:21:12Z","timestamp":1784067672000},"page":"475-480","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Host Species and Meteorological Influences on the Prevalence of Babesia microti (Aconoidasida: Piroplasmida) in Wild Rodents: Insights From a Meta-Analysis in Japan"],"prefix":"10.2108","volume":"43","author":[{"given":"Hiroyuki","family":"Matsuyama","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5F Environmental Building, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8563, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Masahito","family":"Hidaka","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Infectious Diseases, Hokkaido Institute of Public Health, N19W12, Kita, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-0819, Japan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"848","reference":[{"key":"1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"M Asahara,  \"Zool Sci.\"  34, \"Geographic variation of absolute and relative lower molar sizes in two closely related species of Japanese field mice (Apodemus speciosus and Apodemus argenteus: Muridae, Rodentia).\" 26 (2017)","DOI":"10.2108\/zs160103"},{"key":"2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"S Bertolino, LA Wauters, L De Bruyn, et al.  \"Oecologia.\"  137, \"Prevalence of coccidia parasites (Protozoa) in red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris): effects of host phenotype and environmental factors.\" 286 (2003)","DOI":"10.1007\/s00442-003-1345-x"},{"key":"3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"AM Brehm, VR Assis, LB Martin, et al.  \"Ecology.\"  106, \"Individual variation underlies large-scale patterns: host conditions and behavior affect parasitism.\" e4478 (2025)","DOI":"10.1002\/ecy.4478"},{"key":"4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"M Brooks, K Kristensen, K Benthem, et al.  \"R J.\"  9, \"glmmTMB balances speed and flexibility among packages for zero-inflated generalized linear mixed modeling.\" 378 (2017)","DOI":"10.32614\/RJ-2017-066"},{"key":"5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"JE Byers, JP Schmidt, P Pappalardo, et al.  \"Proc R Soc B.\"  286, \"What factors explain the geographical range of mammalian parasites?\" 20190673 (2019)","DOI":"10.1098\/rspb.2019.0673"},{"key":"6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"JC Clegg,  \"Clin Microbiol Infect.\"  15, \"Influence of climate change on the incidence and impact of arenavirus diseases: a speculative assessment.\" 504 (2009)","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1469-0691.2009.02847.x"},{"key":"7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"K Fujimoto, N Yamaguti, M Takahashi,  \"Med Entomol Zool.\"  37, \"Ecological studies on ixodid ticks: 1. 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Taxonomic and life history characteristics.\" e0180716 (2017)","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0180716"},{"key":"26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"S Morand, K Blasdell, F Bordes, et al.  \"Ecol Appl.\"  29, \"Changing landscapes of Southeast Asia and rodent-borne diseases: decreased diversity but increased transmission risks.\" e01886 (2019)","DOI":"10.1002\/eap.1886"},{"key":"24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"BG Meerburg, GR Singleton, A Kijlstra,  \"Crit Rev Microbiol.\"  35, \"Rodent-borne diseases and their risks for public health.\" 221 (2009)","DOI":"10.1080\/10408410902989837"},{"key":"9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"DJ Gubler, P Reiter, KL Ebi, et al.  \"Environ Health Perspect.\"  109, \"Climate variability and change in the United States: potential impacts on vector- and rodent-borne diseases.\" 223 (2001)","DOI":"10.1289\/ehp.109-1240669"},{"key":"11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"MH Hersh, M Tibbetts, M Strauss, et al.  \"Emerg Infect Dis.\"  18, \"Reservoir competence of wildlife host species for Babesia microti.\" 1951 (2012)","DOI":"10.3201\/eid1812.111392"},{"key":"17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"F Keesing, MH Hersh, M Tibbetts, et al.  \"Emerg Infect Dis.\"  18, \"Reservoir competence of vertebrate hosts for Anaplasma phagocytophilum.\" 2013 (2012)","DOI":"10.3201\/eid1812.120919"}],"container-title":["Zoological Science"],"original-title":[],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,5]],"date-time":"2026-10-05T20:40:23Z","timestamp":1791232823000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/bioone.org\/journals\/zoological-science\/volume-43\/issue-5\/zs250107\/Host-Species-and-Meteorological-Influences-on-the-Prevalence-of-Babesia\/10.2108\/zs250107.full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,9]]},"references-count":54,"journal-issue":{"issue":"5","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,1]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.2108\/zs250107","relation":{},"ISSN":["0289-0003","2212-3830"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0289-0003","type":"print"},{"value":"2212-3830","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,9]]}}}