TY - JOUR
T1 - Molecular characterization of Hepatozoon canis from farm dogs in Pakistan
AU - Ahmad, Abdullah S.
AU - Saeed, Muhammad A.
AU - Rashid, Imran
AU - Ashraf, Kamran
AU - Shehzad, Wasim
AU - Traub, Rebecca J.
AU - Baneth, Gad
AU - Jabbar, Abdul
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2018, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.
PY - 2018/4/1
Y1 - 2018/4/1
N2 - Hepatozoon canis is a tick-borne pathogen of canids, which is distributed worldwide. However, very little is known about this protozoan parasite in Pakistan. This study provides the first molecular evidence of H. canis from farm dogs from three agro-ecological zones of Punjab, Pakistan. A conventional PCR targeting the 18S rRNA gene was used to characterize H. canis from farm dogs from three districts, namely Kasur, Rawalpindi, and Muzaffargarh, in Punjab. Of 341 blood samples tested, 155 (45.5%) were positive for H. canis, 73 (61.3%) from Kasur, 46 (42.5%) from Rawalpindi, and 36 (31.5%) from Muzaffargarh. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that 18S rRNA sequences of H. canis from this study clustered in three clades with those of H. canis from previously published studies to the exclusion of all other Hepatozoon spp. included in the analysis. This study provides the first insight into H. canis from farm dogs in Pakistan. Furthermore, it lays a foundation for future studies of the parasite to assess the impact of canine hepatozoonosis in dogs from various agro-ecological zones in Pakistan where pet ownership of dogs is increasing.
AB - Hepatozoon canis is a tick-borne pathogen of canids, which is distributed worldwide. However, very little is known about this protozoan parasite in Pakistan. This study provides the first molecular evidence of H. canis from farm dogs from three agro-ecological zones of Punjab, Pakistan. A conventional PCR targeting the 18S rRNA gene was used to characterize H. canis from farm dogs from three districts, namely Kasur, Rawalpindi, and Muzaffargarh, in Punjab. Of 341 blood samples tested, 155 (45.5%) were positive for H. canis, 73 (61.3%) from Kasur, 46 (42.5%) from Rawalpindi, and 36 (31.5%) from Muzaffargarh. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that 18S rRNA sequences of H. canis from this study clustered in three clades with those of H. canis from previously published studies to the exclusion of all other Hepatozoon spp. included in the analysis. This study provides the first insight into H. canis from farm dogs in Pakistan. Furthermore, it lays a foundation for future studies of the parasite to assess the impact of canine hepatozoonosis in dogs from various agro-ecological zones in Pakistan where pet ownership of dogs is increasing.
KW - 18S rRNA gene molecular characterization
KW - Dogs
KW - Hepatozoon canis
KW - Pakistan
KW - Prevalence
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85042114282&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00436-018-5790-1
DO - 10.1007/s00436-018-5790-1
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C2 - 29455420
AN - SCOPUS:85042114282
SN - 0932-0113
VL - 117
SP - 1131
EP - 1138
JO - Parasitology Research
JF - Parasitology Research
IS - 4
ER -
