Sarcosporidian cysts in the skeletal muscle of domestic pigeons (Columba livia f. domestica) have previously been attributed to infection with Sarcocystis falcatula, which is shed in the faeces of the opossum (Didelphis virginiana). Here, we describe fatal spontaneous encephalitis and myositis associated with Sarcocystis infections in three flocks of racing pigeons with 47 of 244 animals affect...

The relative importance of MHC genes and background genes in the genetic control of disease susceptibility and the development of protective immunity to E. tenella infection was investigated in eight different strains of 15I5-B congenic and four inbred chicken strains. RPRL 15I5-B congenic chickens that share a common genetic background but express different B haplotypes demonstrated wide varia...

Sarcocystis infections have been reported from the African buffalo ( Syncerus caffer ), but the species have not been named. Here we propose a new name Sarcocystis cafferi from the African buffalo. Histological examination of heart (92), skeletal muscle (36), and tongue (2) sections from 94 buffalos from the Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa, and a review of the literature revealed onl...

BACKGROUND Eimeria tenella (E. tenella) is a species of Eimeria that causes haemorrhagic caecal coccidiosis, resulting in major economic losses in the global poultry industry. After E. tenella infection, the amount of ATP and Bax in host cells showed highly significant changes. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the effects of ATP and Bax on the apoptosis of E. tenella host cells. RESU...

Coccidiosis causes considerable economic losses in the poultry industry. At present, the pathology of coccidiosis is preventable with anticoccidials and vaccination, although at considerable cost to the international poultry industry. The purpose of the present study was to elucidate the relationship between Eimeria tenella development and host cell apoptosis in chickens, which provides a theor...

There is considerable confusion concerning Sarcocystis species in camels. Five species: Sarcocystis cameli, Sarcocystis ippeni, Sarcocystis camelicanis, Sarcocystis camelocanis and Sarcocystis miescheri were named with inadequate descriptions and no type specimens. Here, we review literature on sarcocystosis in camels worldwide and redescribe structure of S. cameli and S. ippeni sarcocysts by l...

Species of Sarcocystis are Apicomplexan parasites requiring intermediate and definitive hosts to complete their life cycle. Humans are one of many natural host species and may serve as both intermediate and definitive hosts. However, the extent and public health significance of human Sarcocystis infection are incompletely known. In this minireview, we provide an update on the epidemiology and d...

The effects of cyclosporin A (CsA) treatment and hormonal bursectomy on Eimeria tenella infection of chickens were investigated to evaluate the role of humoral antibody and cell-mediated immunity (CMI) in the host protective immunity to an intestinal protozoan disease, coccidiosis. Hormonal bursectomy had no significant effect on the host response to E. tenella. CsA treatment had a differential...

Sarcocystis is one of the most prevalent parasites of domestic ruminants worldwide. This study was aimed to determine prevalence of Sarcocystis infection and molecular discrimination of Sarcocystis gigantea and Sarcocystis medusiformis infecting domestic sheep. Tissue samples from 638 sheep slaughtered at Urmia abattoir were randomly collected from February 2011 to January 2012. Genomic DNA ext...

Parasites of the genus Sarcocystis have the ability to infect wide range of animals, birds and reptiles. Water buffaloes are intermediate hosts for four Sarcocystis species; S. fusiformis, S. buffalonis, S. levinei and S. dubeyi. There was no previous molecular identification of Sarcocystis spp. parasitizing water buffaloes from Egypt. The current study was established to screen infection rates...