Studies Of Various Strains Of Echinococcus Granulosus In Livestock In Libya: Prevlence, Ultra-Structure, And Genotypes Of Hydatid Cysts.

Hydatidosis of livestock is a widespread parasitic infection; Libya is not an exception. A total number of 32,971 livestock from different regions in Libya was examined for the prevalence rate. Morphological and molecular characterizations of E. granulosus isolates were also examined. the total prevalence rate in all study areas was 10.97%: 19.2% from sheep, 12.5% in the camels and 10.6% from cattle. The seasonal variations in the prevalence rates were almost similar in all three animals. Typically, the infection rates of hydatid cysts increased with age. Livers and lungs were the most commonly infected organs (43.1% and 42.1% respectively). The viability rates of fertile hydatid cysts in sheep and camels were 76.1% and 75.2% respectively with significant differences (P≤ 001) between them. The largest cyst size was found in the liver of camels (12.4 cm). The large and small hooks of protoscoleces were measured for their total, blade, and handle lengths as well as the width. From sheep, significant differences (P ≤ 0.01) between total lengths from different organs were seen. But based on the Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA), the differentiation in the liver and lung was low, but some lengths on spleen and mesentery with slightly high differentiation. For camels, significant differences (P ≤ 0.01) were seen between different organs. based on the DFA. The differences in the liver and lung were strong, but in the spleen it was low with most of them were distributed in the lungs. Tiny hooks were seen, denoting a possible presence of complete or incomplete third rostellar hooks

Molecular characterization of Cysticercus tenuicollis of slaughtered livestock in Upper Egypt governorates

Objective: To present the molecular characterization of Cysticercus tenuicollis (C. tenuicollis) of Taenia hydatigena (T. hydatigena) from livestock isolates in Egypt, and to introduce a detailed image of C. tenuicollis infection in ruminant animals in Upper Egypt. Methods: The prevalence rates of C. tenuicollis infections among the slaughtered animals from different organs were determined using the amplification of sequencing of the MT-CO1 gene. Results: In the present study the infection rates of C. tenuicollis were found to be 16% and 19% in sheep and goat samples respectively. Firstly we report one larval stage of T. hydatigena detected in the camel liver in Egypt. C. tenuicollis infection manifested a higher prevalence in females than in males. Those above two years of age manifested a higher infection rate than younger animals. The preferred site for the infection was the omentum: a 70% preference in sheep and a 68% preference in goats. The molecular characterization using the MT-CO1 gene of isolates from sheep, goats and camels corresponded to T. hydatigena. For this study, molecular characterizations of T. hydatigena were done for the first time in Egypt. Molecular tools are of great assistance in characterizing the C. tenuicollis parasite especially when the morphological character cannot be detected, because the metacestodes are frequently confused with infection by the hydatid cyst, especially when these occur in the visceral organs. In the present study, C. tenuicollis manifested high identity in the goat and sheep samples, while differences were found more frequently in the camel samples (10 base pair). Conclusions: Clearly molecular diagnosis for C. tenuicollis infection significantly helps to differentiate it from such other metacestodes as hydatidosis, which manifests a completely different pathogenicity and requires different control programs

Phylogenetic study of Theileria ovis and Theileria lestoquardi in sheep from Egypt: Molecular evidence and genetic characterization

Background and Aim: Ovine theileriosis caused by Theileria ovis and Theileria lestoquardi is an important infectious disease affecting small ruminants in regions of the tropic and subtropic zones. There is limited studies about ovine theileriosis in Egypt; so the present study aims to assess the occurrence of ovine theileriosis in Egypt at the molecular level. Materials and Methods: Blood samples were collected from 115 randomly selected sheep, which were apparently healthy; the ages of the sampled sheep ranged from 1 to 5 years old, from a local breed (barkae and balade), and showed no symptoms indicating infection with Theileria spp. The study was conducted in three governorates representing Lower Egypt (Menoufia and Beheira) and Upper Egypt (El-Wady El-Geded). All blood samples were subjected to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and semi-nested PCR to target Theileria spp. 18S rRNA genes. Positive samples were sequenced, and these sequences were analyzed using nucleotide basic local alignment search tool (BLAST). Results: Six animals (5.22%) were PCR-positive carriers for ovine theileriosis. Nucleotide BLAST and phylogenetic analyses of the six obtained sequences showed that T. ovis was present in five animals (4.37%) in Menoufia (n=2) and El-Wady El-Geded (n=3), whereas T. lestoquardi was detected in 1 animal (0.87%) in El-Wady El-Geded. Conclusion: This study is the first to provide molecular evidence, genetic characterization, and phylogenetic analysis of ovine Theileria spp. in Egypt. Specifically, T. lestoquardi and T. ovis carrier statuses of sheep were confirmed. These results highlight the importance of developing an effective control strategy against ovine theileriosis carriers that might develop and/or spread theileriosis