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Molecular prevalence of Cryptosporidium species among household cats and pet shop kittens in Japan

OBJECTIVES: To address the lack of up-to-date published data, the present study evaluates the PCR-based prevalence of Cryptosporidium species infection and molecular characteristics of isolates among household cats and pet shop kittens in Japan. METHODS: A total of 357 and 329 fresh faecal samples w...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Ito, Yoichi, Itoh, Naoyuki, Iijima, Yuko, Kimura, Yuya
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: SAGE Publications 2017
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5607915/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28955478
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2055116917730719
Descripción
Sumario:OBJECTIVES: To address the lack of up-to-date published data, the present study evaluates the PCR-based prevalence of Cryptosporidium species infection and molecular characteristics of isolates among household cats and pet shop kittens in Japan. METHODS: A total of 357 and 329 fresh faecal samples were collected from household cats and pet shop kittens, respectively, with or without clinical signs of infection. A nested PCR assay targeting the 18S rRNA gene was employed for the detection of Cryptosporidium species. After specific DNA fragments (approximately 826 base pairs) were confirmed, the amplicons were sequenced to determine species. RESULTS: Seven (2.0%) household cats and one (0.3%) pet shop kitten tested positive for the presence of Cryptosporidium species. In household cats, there was a significant difference in prevalence between cats aged <1 year (4.6%) and those aged ⩾1 year (0.4%). No significantly different prevalence was observed with regard to faecal condition in either household cats or pet shop kittens. A total of eight Cryptosporidium species isolates, seven from household cats and one from a pet shop kitten, were identified as Cryptosporidium felis. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The present study demonstrates the risk of zoonotic transmission of Cryptosporidium species from household cats and pet shop kittens to humans is low in Japan.