Ana M Figueiredo, Mónica Santín, Pamela C Köster, Alejandro Dashti, Jenny G Maloney, Rita T Torres, Carlos Fonseca, Atle Mysterud, João Carvalho, Dário Hipólito, Mariana Rossa, Josman D Palmeira, David González-Barrio, Rafael Calero-Bernal, David Carmena
Blastocystis is a ubiquitous intestinal protist in humans and animals worldwide. The traditional livestock free-roaming raising system in rural communities increases the risk of infection with contact with a wider range of pathogens transmitted via the faecal-oral route associated with that wildlife-livestock-human interface. However, no studies have been conducted to determine the occurrence and subtype distribution of Blastocystis in livestock in Portugal. Here, we collected 180 faecal samples from herbivore livestock (cattle, goats, horses, and sheep) in different regions of the country to investigate Blastocystis prevalence and subtype diversity using PCR and next-generation amplicon sequencing...
February 12, 2024: Veterinary Parasitology