Search

Background: Little is known about the prevalence and zoonotic potential of Cryptosporidium spp. and Giardia duodenalis in deer in China. In this study, 662 fecal samples were collected from 11 farms in Henan and Jilin Provinces between July 2013 and August 2014, and were screened for the presence of Cryptosporidium and G. duodenalis with genotyping and subtyping methods. Results: Cryptosporidium spp. and G. duodenalis were detected in 6.80% (45/662) and 1.21% (5/662) of samples, respectively. Six Cryptosporidium species/genotypes were identified based on the small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (SSU rRNA) gene: C. parvum (n = 11); C. andersoni (n = 5); C. ubiquitum (n = 3); C. muris (n = 1); C. suis-like (n = 1); and Cryptosporidium deer genotype (n = 24). When five of the 11 C. parvum isolates were subtyped by sequencing the 60 kDa glycoprotein (gp60) gene, zoonotic subtypes IIaA15G2R2 (n = 4) and IIdA19G1 (n = 1) were found. According to a subtype analysis, three C. ubiquitum isolates belonged to XIIa subtype 2. In contrast, only assemblage E was detected in the five Giardia-positive samples with small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (SSU rRNA) gene sequencing. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to report C. andersoni, as well as C. parvum zoonotic subtypes IIaA15G2R2 and IIdA19G1 in cervids. These data, though limited, suggest that cervids may be a source of zoonotic Cryptosporidium and Giardia. Cervids in the present study are likely to be of low zoonotic potential to humans, and more molecular epidemiological studies are required to clarify the prevalence and public health significance of Cryptosporidium and G. duodenalis in cervids throughout China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cryptosporidium spp. are zoonotic parasites responsible for diarrhoeal diseases in animals and humans worldwide. Cattle are the most common mammalian species in which Cryptosporidium is detected, with pre-weaned calves considered to be reservoirs for zoonotic C. parvum. In October 2013, severe diarrhoea was observed in 396 pre-weaned calves at a farm in the Ningxia Autonomous Region of Northwestern China. 356 of the infected calves died despite antibiotic therapy., Findings: 252 faecal samples were collected from the investigated farm. The identity of Cryptosporidium species was determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis, and by DNA sequence analysis of the small subunit (SSU) rRNA gene. C. parvum was subtyped using sequence analysis of the 60 kDa glycoprotein (gp60) gene. The highest infection rate of 83.3% (40/48) was seen in 2-3-week-old calves with diarrhoea, corresponding to the age at which animals died. Three Cryptosporidium species were identified, including C. parvum (n = 51), C. bovis (n = 1), and C. ryanae (n = 1). All C. parvum isolates were further identified as subtype IIdA15G1., Conclusions: Cryptosporidium parvum was likely to be most responsible for diarrhoea and death. This is the first report of a cryptosporidiosis outbreak caused by C. parvum IIdA15G1 in Chinese dairy cattle.