Phenotypic and Molecular Characterization of Most Prevalent Eimeria Species of Dairy Cattle from Indian Subtropical Region
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.48165/ijvsbt.21.3.02Keywords:
Cattle, DNA, Eimeria, ITS-1, PCR, Ribosomal RNA genesAbstract
A total of 2469 faecal samples were examined from 12 different villages in Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh to determine the presence and to conduct morphological and molecular characterization of Eimeria species. Morphological characterizations were performed by the faecal flotation method. The analytic survey revealed that the overall prevalence of Eimeria species in dairy cattle was 11.05% (273/2469). A total of nine Eimeria species were identified. E. zuernii and E. bovis species were reported in a maximum number of dairy cattle with a prevalence rate of 6.95% and 5.49%, respectively. The internal transcribed spacer-1(ITS-1) region of the ribosomal RNA genes of E. bovis and E. zuernii, were amplified, sequenced and studied in the current work to determine their evolutionary relationships. Pair-wise comparison showed over 90% homology between sequences from the same species. Furthermore, species-specific PCR tests based on amplification of the ITS-1 region were developed to differentiate between E. zuernii and E. bovis. The ITS-1 region of each Eimeria species displayed enough interspecies sequence variation to create primer sets that specifically amplified the target species. This PCR method demonstrated greater sensitivity than traditional methods for identifying and distinguishing between Eimeria species. This marks the first genomic-level attempt to identify two Eimeria parasites in cattle, potentially offering valuable tools for the diagnosis and study of cattle coccidiosis.
Downloads
References
Akoolo, L., Rocha, S.C., & Parveen, N. (2022). Protozoan co-infections and parasite influence on the efficacy of vaccines against bacterial and viral pathogens. Frontiers in Microbiology, 13, 1020029.
Bangoura, B., Mundt, F., Schmäschke, H.C., Westphal, R., & Daugschies, A. (2012). Prevalence of Eimeria bovis and Eimeria zuernii in German cattle herds and factors influencing oocyst excretion. Parasitology Research, 110(2), 875–881.
Carvalho, F.S., Wenceslau, A.A., Teixeira, M., Matos, C.J.A., Melo, A.D., & Albuquerque, G.R. (2011). Diagnosis of Eimeria species using traditional and molecular methods in field studies. Veterinary Parasitology, 176, 95–100.
Das, M., Deka, D.K., Sarmah, A.K., Sarmah, P.C., & Islam, S. (2018). Gastrointestinal parasitic infections in cattle and swamp buffalo of Guwahati, Assam, India. Indian Journal of Animal Research, 52(12), 1732–1738.
Deb, L.C., Syed, A.S.U., Baidhya, C.C., Nath, N.D., Ghosh, S., & Paul, S. (2022). Prevalence of Eimeria spp. with associated risk factors in dairy calves in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Veterinary Medical Science, 8, 1250–1257.
Dulski, P., & Turner, M. (1987). The purification of sporocysts and sporozoites from Eimeria tenella oocysts using percoll density gradients. Avian Diseases, 32, 235–239.
Ekawasti, F., Nurcahyo, R.W., Nashrulloh, M.F., Priyowidodo, D., & Prastowo, J. (2022). Development of a multiplex polymerase chain reaction technique for detection and discrimination of Eimeria spp. in cattle in Indonesia. Veterinary World, 15(4), 975–980.
EL-Ashram, S., Aboelhadid, S.M., Kamel, A.A., Mahrous, L.N., & Abdelwahab, K.H. (2019). Diversity of parasitic diarrhea associated with Buxtonella sulcata in cattle and buffalo calves with control of buxtonellosis. Animals, 9(5), 259.
Floriao, M.M., Lopes, B.D.B., Berto, B.P., & Carlos, W.G.L. (2016). New approaches for morphological diagnosis of bovine Eimeria species: a study on a subtropical organic dairy farm in Brazil. Tropical Animal Health and Production, 48, 577–584.
Gupta, Monika A., & Pilania, P.K. (2020). Prevalence, diversity and risk assessment of Eimeria species of animals in semi-arid eastern plain of Rajasthan. Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies, 8(6), 1937–1941.
Jenkins, M.C., Miska, K., & Klopp, S. (2006). Application of polymerase chain reaction based on ITS1 rDNA to speciate Eimeria. Avian Diseases, 50, 110–114.
Kawahara, F., Kensuke, T., Nagai, S., Onaga, H., Onuma, M., & Nunoya, T. (2008). Detection of five avian Eimeria species by species-specific real-time polymerase chain reaction assay. Avian Diseases, 52, 652–656.
Kawahara, F., Zhang, G., Mingala, C.N., Tamura, Y., Koiwa, M., Onuma, M., & Nunoya, T. (2010). Genetic analysis and development of species-specific PCR assays based on ITS-1 region of rRNA in bovine Eimeria parasites. Veterinary Parasitology, 174(1), 49–57.
Kokuzawa, T., Ichikawa-Seki, M., & Itagaki, T. (2013). Determination of phylogenetic relationships among Eimeria species, which parasitize cattle, on basis of 18S rDNA sequence. Journal of Veterinary Medical Science, 75(11), 1427–1431.
Krishnamurthy, C.M., & D’Souza, P.E. (2016). Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in bovines in Bangalore district, Karnataka. Journal of Parasitic Diseases, 40(3), 630–632.
Lee, S.H., Kim, H.Y., & Lee, H. (2018). Eimeria species in cattle with diarrhea in the Republic of Korea regarding age, season and nature of diarrhea. Veterinary Record, 183(16), 504.
Lew, A.E., Anderson, G.R., Minchin, C.M., Jeston, P.J., & Jorgensen, W.K. (2003). Inter- and intra-strain variation and PCR detection of the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS-1) sequences of Australian isolates of Eimeria species from chickens. Veterinary Parasitology, 112, 33–50.
Li, D.L., Gong, Q.L., Ge, G.Y., Wang, Q., Sheng, C.Y., Ma, B.Y., Chen, Z.Y., Yang, Y., Li, J.M., Shi, K., Leng, X., & Du, R. (2021). Prevalence and infection risk factors of bovine Eimeria in China: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Parasite, 28, 61.
Lopez-Osorio, S., Villar, D., Failing, K., Taubert, A., Hermosilla, C., & Chaparro-Gutierrez, J.J. (2020). Epidemiological survey and risk factor analysis on Eimeria infections in calves and young cattle up to 1 year old in Colombia. Parasitology Research, 119(1), 255–266.
Manya, P., Sinha, S.R.P., Sinha, S., Verma, S.B., Sharma, S.K., & Mandal, K.G. (2008). Prevalence of bovine coccidiosis at Patna. Journal of Veterinary Parasitology, 22(2), 73–76.
Matjila, P.T., & Penzhorn, B.L. (2002). Occurrence and diversity of bovine coccidia at three localities in South Africa. Veterinary Parasitology, 104, 93–102.
Nain, N., Gupta, S.K., Sangwan, A.K., & Gupta, S. (2017). Prevalence of Eimeria species in buffalo calves of Haryana. Haryana Veterinarian, 56(1), 5–8.
Olafadunsin, S.D., Rabiu, M., Hussain, K., Sanda, I.M., & Ganiyu, I.A. (2020). Epidemiological studies of Eimeria species of cattle in Ilorin, North-Central Nigeria. Annals of Parasitology, 66(3), 373–384.
Pal, M., & Firaol, T. (2024). A systematic review on bovine coccidiosis and its economic impact. International Journal of Livestock Research, 14(3), 6–12.
Singh, A.K., Das, G., Roy, B., Nath, S., Naresh, R., & Kumar, S. (2015). Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasitic infections in goat of Madhya Pradesh, India. Journal of Parasitic Diseases, 39(4), 716–719.
Sodha, D.B., Monika, A.K., Chouhan, A., & Pilania, P.K. (2021). Prevalence and risk assessment of coccidiosis in dairy animals of transitional plain in Luni basin of Rajasthan. Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies, 9(1), 706–710.
Sufi, I.M., Cahyaningsih, U., & Sudarnika, E. (2017). Eimeria species composition and factors influencing oocysts shedding in dairy farm, Bandung, Indonesia. Biotropia, 24, 104–113.
Tamura, K., & Nei, M. (1993). Estimation of the number of nucleotide substitutions in the control region of mitochondrial DNA in humans and chimpanzees. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 10, 512–526.
Tamura, K., Stecher, G., Peterson, D., Filipski, A., & Kumar, S. (2013). MEGA6: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis version 6.0. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 30, 2725–2729.
Tsuji, N., Kawazu, S., Ohta, M., Kamio, T., Isobe, T., Shimura, K., & Fujisaki, K. (1997). Discrimination of eight chicken Eimeria species using the two-step polymerase chain reaction. Journal of Parasitology, 83, 966–970.
Yadeessa, T.K., Awash, H.D., & Gurmu, G.K. (2014). Prevalence of calves’ coccidiosis in Jimma town dairy farms, South-Western Ethiopia. Scientific Journal of Zoology, 3(4), 36–44.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Indian Journal of Veterinary Sciences and Biotechnology
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
