Molecular Identification and Genotyping of Babesia canis in Dogs from Meshkin Shahr County, Northwestern Iran

BACKGROUND: Canine babesiosis is one of the mainly worldwide-distributed tick-borne haemoprotozoan parasitic diseases in dogs. METHODS: A total of 43 blood samples were randomly collected from naturally infected dogs in seven villages from different geographical areas of Meshkin Shahr, Ardabil Province, Iran. The presence of Babesia species detected with standard methods including parasitological and gene sequencing techniques targeting the 18S rRNA gene. RESULTS: Our results revealed that four dogs 9.3% (4/43) including one female and three male dogs were infected with Babesia. All four Babesia-infected dogs were confirmed B. canis by the molecular-based method. Sequence alignments comparison of the B. canis genotypes A and B, it was revealed that all B. canis isolates belonged to genotype B. CONCLUSION: This study provides essential data for subsequently define the critical importance of the molecular studies in management and prevention of the canine babesiosis in Iran.