Potential host-adaption of Cryptosporidium felis
Cryptosporidium felis is a protozoan and has been considered a zoonotic agent in felines and humans. It causes severe gastrointestinal disease in humans.
In this study, sixty-six C. felis-positive samples from the United States, Jamaica, Peru, Portugal, Slovakia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, China, India, and Australia were analyzed. Of the 66, 58 samples from humans, 6 from cats, 1 from calf, and 1 from rhesus macaque were examined. These DNA samples were first confirmed to be positive for C. felis by PCR and sequence analysis of the small subunit rRNA gene. Then, PCR targeting the gp60 gene was used in typing this protozoan. Forty-four participants produced gp60 sequences, 23 subtypes were divided into 4 subtype families (XIXa, XIXc, XIXd, and XIXe).
The results showed a high genetic diversity of this parasite and 18 subtypes from cats and humans from different geographical areas. It also showed the host adaptation changes of C. felis on the subtype family XIXd. This one from humans was recorded to have identical sequences and could be adapted to humans. All the data obtained suggested a potential host-adaptation of C. felis at the subtype level.
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