Prevalence and molecular characterization of <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> spp. and <italic>Giardia duodenalis</italic> in deer in Henan and Jilin, China.

Background: Little is known about the prevalence and zoonotic potential of <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> spp. and <italic>Giardia duodenalis</italic> 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 <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> and <italic>G. duodenalis</italic> with genotyping and subtyping methods. Results: <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> spp. and <italic>G. duodenalis</italic> were detected in 6.80% (45/662) and 1.21% (5/662) of samples, respectively. Six <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> species/genotypes were identified based on the small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (<italic>SSU</italic> rRNA) gene: <italic>C. parvum</italic> (<italic>n</italic> = 11); <italic>C. andersoni</italic> (<italic>n</italic> = 5); <italic>C. ubiquitum</italic> (<italic>n</italic> = 3); <italic>C. muris</italic> (<italic>n</italic> = 1); <italic>C. suis</italic>-like (<italic>n</italic> = 1); and <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> deer genotype (<italic>n</italic> = 24). When five of the 11 <italic>C. parvum</italic> isolates were subtyped by sequencing the 60 kDa glycoprotein (<italic>gp60</italic>) gene, zoonotic subtypes IIaA15G2R2 (<italic>n</italic> = 4) and IIdA19G1 (<italic>n</italic> = 1) were found. According to a subtype analysis, three <italic>C. ubiquitum</italic> isolates belonged to XIIa subtype 2. In contrast, only assemblage E was detected in the five <italic>Giardia</italic>-positive samples with small subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (<italic>SSU</italic> rRNA) gene sequencing. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to report <italic>C. andersoni</italic>, as well as <italic>C. parvum</italic> zoonotic subtypes IIaA15G2R2 and IIdA19G1 in cervids. These data, though limited, suggest that cervids may be a source of zoonotic <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> and <italic>Giardia</italic>. 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 <italic>Cryptosporidium</italic> and <italic>G. duodenalis</italic> in cervids throughout China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]