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Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (NADPH oxidase), as a key factor in innate immunity, consists of several components, one of them is p40phox which is encoded by neutrophil cytosolic factor 4 (NCF4). Respiratory burst and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production are antimicrobial mechanisms associated with NADPH oxidase. This study evaluated the effects of g.18174 A > G and g.18270C > T single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in NCF4 on bovine mastitis and the respiratory burst capacity of neutrophils. SNPs of 160 dairy cattle were determined using a novel PCR-RFLP protocol by employing restriction enzymes, MboI and FokI. Also, the flow cytometry measured respiratory burst in 82 blood samples. Our results indicated that only g.18174 A > G SNP reduced the respiratory burst capacity. However, both SNPs were not significantly correlated with clinical mastitis. We concluded that g.18174 A > G decreases the function of NADPH oxidase. However, both SNPs were not significantly correlated with clinical mastitis., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. Furthermore, the authors declare that the research was conducted without any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In all equids worldwide, Theileria equi and Babesia caballi are believed to be two important erythrocytic protozoa that cause equine piroplasmosis. In addition, it was recently discovered that Theileria haneyi is another potential equine piroplasmosis (EP) agent. Ixodid ticks are the major vectors of these parasites. Equine piroplasmosis is of international importance and affects enormously the equine industry. In this study, for the first time, molecular prevalence and genetic diversity of piroplasma parasites (T. equi and B. caballi) in horses from Fars province (south of Iran) were determined. Also, hematological alterations of naturally infected horses were analyzed. PCR positive horses showed anemia, thrombocytopenia, leukocytosis with a left shift of neutrophilia, and monocytosis. PCR results revealed that, from 133 blood samples of horses, 40 samples were positive (30.07%). The occurrence of T. equi in this area (30.07%) was more than the national average prevalence of T. equi (24.11%), but B. caballi prevalence in study area (0%) was less than the average of previous studies in Iran (5.47%). Our findings revealed that the T. equi was widespread in Fars province of Iran. PCR products of 18S rDNA and EMA-1 genes of T. equi strains were sequenced successfully. All 18S rDNA sequences collected in this experiment revealed 100% similarity together. According to the phylogenetic tree constructed using the 18S rDNA gene, Iranian T. equi is clustered with strains from Cuba (KY111762, KY111761) and USA (CP001669, JX177672). So, this could be concluded that T. equi studied in this research, and those strains are initiated from a common T. equi ancestor at an unknown time ago. Also, the phylogenetic tree based on EMA-1 gene demonstrated a genetically diverse population of Iranian T. equi strains (10 different genotypes). As EMA-1 is one of the most immunogenic antigens in this parasite, such variability could be a concern about the efficacy of T. equi vaccines. Finally, more studies on equine piroplasmosis in the provinces of the southern region of Iran are recommended to create a better vision of disease in this region., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Hydatidosis is a medically and veterinary important parasitic disease that is endemic in many parts of the world. Unilocular hydatid cysts may develop in almost any part of the body. Up to 70% of hydatid cysts are located in the liver, followed by 25% in the lungs. Cerebral hydatidosis is an uncommon manifestation of the disease, occurring in less than 1/1000 infected hosts, yet diagnosis does pose a problem. We have reported an exceptionally rare case of cerebral hydatidosis in cattle. This is the first report to describe the characteristic pathological features of the cerebral hydatidosis in cattle caused by the G1 genotype of Echinococcus granulosus. Genotypic analysis was performed on a hydatid cyst from a cow originating from southern Iran, based on the sequence analysis of the cox1 mitochondrial gene.

The present study assessed whether the genetic variation among different hosts (sheep and cattle) and geographical isolates (n= 28) of Dicrocoelium dendriticum from Iran is present based on mitochondrial (nad1) and ribosomal (ITS-2) DNA markers. Molecular analysis revealed the presence of at least ten and two distinct haplotypes in the NADH dehydrogenase gene (nad1) and internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS-2), respectively. The nad1 and ITS-2 sequence data were deposited in GenBank under accession numbers, JX050110-134 and JQ966972-3. According to the results of our study, ND-D and ITS-A are established as being the predominant haplotypes of D. dendriticum in Iran. The Iranian isolates showed a higher intraspecific genetic diversity of 0-0.97% for nad1, compared to 0-0.42% for ITS-2. The alignment and comparison of nad1 and ITS-2 sequences revealed eight and one polymorphic sites, respectively. In the nad1 sequences, six were silent and two nucleotide substitutions were responsible for amino acid alterations. A phylogenetic analysis of the sequence data revealed that host associations and geographic location are not likely useful markers for D. dendriticum haplotype classification. Consequently, sequencing results obtained from the nad1 gene as a mitochondrial marker for the first time in this study would provide a valuable tool to analyse further molecular details of D. dendriticum worldwide.

The present study compared the genetic variation among 19 different isolates of Fasciola hepatica from cattle and sheep in different areas of Iran using sequence data for mitochondrial DNA gene, the subunit 1 of cytochrome C oxidase gene (CO1). Four different CO1 genotypes were detected among F. hepatica isolates that showed five variable nucleotide positions (accession nos.; GQ398051, GQ398052, GQ398053, GQ398054). Nucleotide sequence variation among 19 isolates for CO1 analyzed in this study ranged from 0% to 0.98% in Iran. Among the five polymorphism sites identified in this study, only one (T to G at position 51 in 5'end of GQ175362) resulted in putative amino acid alteration of phenylalanine (TTT) to leucine (TTG) in CO1. A phylogenetic analysis of the sequence data revealed that host associations and geographic location are likely not useful markers for Fasciola genotype classification. In addition, morphological analysis showed that the ratios of body length and body width of some (n = 5) of the 19 examined F. hepatica isolates were intermediate between F. hepatica and Fasciola gigantica, representing the substantial polymorphism of the F. hepatica species and the difficulty in the accurate recognition based on morphological features. In conclusion, Iranian F. hepatica exhibited the presence of considerable genetic diversity at CO1.