Prevalence of tick infestation and molecular characterization of spotted fever Rickettsia massiliae in Rhipicephalus species parasitizing domestic small ruminants in north-central Nigeria.

Ticks are of great menace to animal and human health. They serve as vectors to both animals and human pathogens including Rickettsia species. Tick-borne rickettsiosis in West Africa remains incompletely understood.

Serospatial epidemiology of zoonotic Coxiella burnetii in a cross section of cattle and small ruminants in northern Nigeria.

The persistent and highly transmissible Coxiella burnetii is a neglected infection that negatively affects reproductive parameters of livestock. It is also of zoonotic importance and has been reported to cause devastating human infections globally. Domestic ruminants represent the most frequent source of human infection.