Babesia spp. in wild cervids species

Abstract

Introduction: Babesiosis is an emerging zoonotic disease and various wildlife species are reservoir hosts for zoonotic species of Babesia. In Europe, B. divergens, B. sp. EU1 proposed as B. venatorum are capable of causing severe disease in man, and most cases are from spleenectomised patients. Babesia sp. EU1 has also been identified in roe deer, and B. divergens and B. capreoli have been described as occurring in wild European cervids. Objectives: The objective of the present study was to investigate the presence and prevalence of Babesia spp. in wild cervids. Materials & Methods: From 2013 to 2016, spleen samples were collected from 203 free ranging ungulates (99 moose, 67 roe deer, 37 red deer) in the southern part of Norway. The DNA was amplified by PCR using two different PCR protocols conventional PCR and RT‐PCR for Babesia spp. 18S RNA. PCR products after conventional PCR amplification were analysed by 1.5% agarose gel. Amplicons obtained from amplification were purified, obtained sequences were compared with sequences available from the GenBank database. Phylogenetic analyses were conducted using MEGA6 software. Results: DNA of Babesia spp. was found in all tested cervids species. By using conventional PCR, 4 out of 99 moose (4 %), 35 out of 67 roe deer (52.2%), 12 out of 37 red deer (32.4 %) were positive for Babesia spp. The sequence data revealed that Babesia spp. sequences of wild cervids species were similar with B. capreoli, B. divergens, B. venatorum, B. cf. odocoilei, B. odocoilei. Conclusion: We detected a high prevalence of Babesia spp. DNA in roe deer (52.2 %) and red deer (32.4%) and low prevalence in moose (4%).