Molecular Investigation of ImportantProtozoal Infections
in Yaks
Yanfang Lan1,$,*, Kun Li2,3,$,*,Khalid Mehmood4 and Qudratullah5
1Wuhan
Business University, Wuhan 430056, People’s Republic of China;
2Institute of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, College
of Veterinary Medicine, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing
210095, China; 3MOE Joint International Research
Laboratory of Animal Health and Food Safety, College of Veterinary
Medicine, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, PR China;
4Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Faculty of
Veterinary & Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur
63100, Bahawalpur, Pakistan; 5Department of Surgery and
Pet Center, Cholistan University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences,
Bahawalpur, 63100, Pakistan
§Those
authors contributed equally to this study.
*Corresponding author:
1406621949@qq.com
(YFL); lik2014@sina.com (KL)
Abstract
Theileria, Babesia and Cryptosporidiumare
important parasitic pathogens in cattle. Herein, we carried out this survey to
reveal the prevalence and genetic characteristics of four important protozoa in
yaks in western China. A total of 1091 serum samples were totally acquired from
yaks on the high remote plateau and were assayed for antibodies against
Theileria and Babesiaby pilot commercial ELISA kits. Eighty-five blood
samples and 57 feces were obtained and PCR
analyses were performed. The results revealed that the overall prevalence
of Theileria, Babesia andmixedTheileria-Babesiainfections in
yaks was 15.12, 21.54 and 6.51%, respectively. Four out of 85 blood samples were
observed to be PCR-positive for Babesia bigemina (B. bigemina)
with 99.77% similarity to the MK587709.1 isolate. Among the 57 fecal samples,
five samples tested positive for C. parvum (IId genotype), while one sample tested positive forC.
hominis. Our study provides a solid theoretical basis for the need to
prevent infections of animals by those protozoa in order to improve yaks’
productivity on the Qinghai Tibetan plateau.
To Cite This Article:
Lan Y, Li K,Mehmood K and Qudratullah,
2021. Molecular investigation of importantprotozoal infectionsin yaks. Pak Vet J,
41(4): 557-561.
http://dx.doi.org/10.29261/pakvetj/2020.048