No abstract

Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato is a zoonotic helminth with a life cycle that include of definitive hosts (dogs and wild carnivores) and intermediate hosts (usually the even-toed ungulates, Artiodactyla). Intermediate hosts become infected by ingesting the parasite eggs in contaminated food and water. Accidental intermediate hosts acquire infection in a similar way as other intermediate hosts. A two-year-old female cat was presented to the Van (Turkey) Animal Care and Rehabilitation Center with abdominal tension. Multiple intraperitoneal vesicles, which were found to be E. granulosus (s.1.) metacestodes, were observed during the ultrasound imaging. Then, the animal was laparotomized. Phylogenetic analysis based the partial cytochrome c oxidase 1 (pcox1) mitochondrial gene region was performed on metacestode samples (hydatid cysts). The isolate was identified as sensu stricto genotype G1, which is most commonly found in Turkey.

Equine Piroplasmosis (EP) is a tick-borne disease caused by Theileria equi and Babesia caballi of the phylum Apicomplexa. In this study, 102 blood samples were randomly collected from the horses in Mus province of Turkey. PCR analysis, gene sequences, and phylogenetic analyses were carried out for detecting the presence and genotypic characteristics of species that cause piroplasmosis. Four (3.9%) of the 102 horses that were examined were found to be positive for T. equi, while B. caballi was not detected. Theileria equi isolates that were detected in the sequence analyses were found to be 100% identical to the isolates that were isolated from the horses in Turkey, the United States, and South Africa as well. In the phylogenetic analysis, all of the isolates were found to cluster with T. equi sequences in the genotype A. This study, in which we revealed intraspecies sequence heterogeneity of the parasite using the 18S rRNA gene region, provides important epidemiological data for equine piroplasmosis. However, we think that determining the characterization of genotypes that are common in different parts of our country is extremely important in terms of developing new diagnostic tools and vaccines.