Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi
Equine piroplasmosis is a worldwide tick-borne disease caused by the parasites Theileria equi sensu lato and Babesia caballi, with significant economic and sanitary consequences. These two parasites are genetically variable, with a potential impact on diagnostic accuracy.Our study aimed to evaluate...
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Elsevier
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Ticks and Tick-Borne Diseases |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877959X24001274 |
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| author | Maggy Jouglin Claire Bonsergent Nathalie de la Cotte Mickaël Mège Céline Bizon Anne Couroucé Élodie-Anne Lallemand Agnès Leblond Louise C Lemonnier Aurélia Leroux Ilaria Marano Alexandre Muzard Émilie Quéré Marion Toussaint Albert Agoulon Laurence Malandrin |
| author_facet | Maggy Jouglin Claire Bonsergent Nathalie de la Cotte Mickaël Mège Céline Bizon Anne Couroucé Élodie-Anne Lallemand Agnès Leblond Louise C Lemonnier Aurélia Leroux Ilaria Marano Alexandre Muzard Émilie Quéré Marion Toussaint Albert Agoulon Laurence Malandrin |
| author_sort | Maggy Jouglin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Equine piroplasmosis is a worldwide tick-borne disease caused by the parasites Theileria equi sensu lato and Babesia caballi, with significant economic and sanitary consequences. These two parasites are genetically variable, with a potential impact on diagnostic accuracy.Our study aimed to evaluate the frequency of asymptomatic carriers of these parasites in France and describe the circulating genotypes. We developed a species-specific nested PCR protocol targeting the 18S small sub-unit (SSU) rRNA gene and used it on blood samples collected from 566 asymptomatic horses across four National Veterinary Schools.The carrier frequency varied from 18.7 % around Paris (central-north) to 56.1 % around Lyon (southeast), with an overall prevalence of 38.3 %. Theileria equi carriers were ten times more frequent (91.7 %; 209/228 isolates) compared to B. caballi carriers (8.3 %; 19/228 isolates). Notably, T. equi carrier frequency was significantly lower in the northern region (Ile de France) compared to the southeastern regions. A positive relationship was observed between the frequencies of asymptomatic carriers and the frequency of previous acute piroplasmosis reported from the owner across all four geographic areas. Neither horse gender nor age showed a significant effect on the frequency of asymptomatic carriers. In some areas, a substantial proportion of horses (22.2 % to 37.5 %) carried T. equi before the age of three years, indicating high infection pressure.Genotyping of 201 T. equi isolates revealed a predominance of genotype E (98 %) and few isolates belonging to genotype A (2 %). Notably, two of the four T. equi genotype A isolates were detected in horses originating from Spain. All 19 B. caballi isolates belonged to the genotype A.The discussion section explores the link between these results, the tick distribution and abundance, and the frequency of detection of T. equi and B. caballi in febrile cases attributed to piroplasmosis. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2b1e713d66da4a7294adac4243698935 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1877-9603 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ticks and Tick-Borne Diseases |
| spelling | doaj-art-2b1e713d66da4a7294adac42436989352025-02-05T04:31:32ZengElsevierTicks and Tick-Borne Diseases1877-96032025-01-01161102434Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballiMaggy Jouglin0Claire Bonsergent1Nathalie de la Cotte2Mickaël Mège3Céline Bizon4Anne Couroucé5Élodie-Anne Lallemand6Agnès Leblond7Louise C Lemonnier8Aurélia Leroux9Ilaria Marano10Alexandre Muzard11Émilie Quéré12Marion Toussaint13Albert Agoulon14Laurence Malandrin15INRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, FranceINRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, FranceINRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, FranceINRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, FranceONIRIS CISCO, University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Nantes, , FranceONIRIS CISCO, University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Nantes, , FranceINTHERES, Université de Toulouse, INRAE, École Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, FranceINRAE, UMR EpiA, VetAgro Sup, Lyon, FranceONIRIS CISCO, University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Nantes, , FranceONIRIS CISCO, University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Nantes, , FranceÉcole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, FranceINRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, France; ONIRIS CISCO, University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Nantes, , FranceÉcole Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort, CHUV-Équidés, Maisons-Alfort, FranceÉcole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse, Toulouse, FranceINRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, FranceINRAE, Oniris, BIOEPAR, 44300 Nantes, France; Corresponding author at: UMR BIOEPAR, Oniris, site de la Chantrerie, 44300 Nantes, France.Equine piroplasmosis is a worldwide tick-borne disease caused by the parasites Theileria equi sensu lato and Babesia caballi, with significant economic and sanitary consequences. These two parasites are genetically variable, with a potential impact on diagnostic accuracy.Our study aimed to evaluate the frequency of asymptomatic carriers of these parasites in France and describe the circulating genotypes. We developed a species-specific nested PCR protocol targeting the 18S small sub-unit (SSU) rRNA gene and used it on blood samples collected from 566 asymptomatic horses across four National Veterinary Schools.The carrier frequency varied from 18.7 % around Paris (central-north) to 56.1 % around Lyon (southeast), with an overall prevalence of 38.3 %. Theileria equi carriers were ten times more frequent (91.7 %; 209/228 isolates) compared to B. caballi carriers (8.3 %; 19/228 isolates). Notably, T. equi carrier frequency was significantly lower in the northern region (Ile de France) compared to the southeastern regions. A positive relationship was observed between the frequencies of asymptomatic carriers and the frequency of previous acute piroplasmosis reported from the owner across all four geographic areas. Neither horse gender nor age showed a significant effect on the frequency of asymptomatic carriers. In some areas, a substantial proportion of horses (22.2 % to 37.5 %) carried T. equi before the age of three years, indicating high infection pressure.Genotyping of 201 T. equi isolates revealed a predominance of genotype E (98 %) and few isolates belonging to genotype A (2 %). Notably, two of the four T. equi genotype A isolates were detected in horses originating from Spain. All 19 B. caballi isolates belonged to the genotype A.The discussion section explores the link between these results, the tick distribution and abundance, and the frequency of detection of T. equi and B. caballi in febrile cases attributed to piroplasmosis.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877959X24001274Equine piroplasmosisAsymptomatic carriersNested PCRTheileria equiBabesia caballiGenotype |
| spellingShingle | Maggy Jouglin Claire Bonsergent Nathalie de la Cotte Mickaël Mège Céline Bizon Anne Couroucé Élodie-Anne Lallemand Agnès Leblond Louise C Lemonnier Aurélia Leroux Ilaria Marano Alexandre Muzard Émilie Quéré Marion Toussaint Albert Agoulon Laurence Malandrin Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi Ticks and Tick-Borne Diseases Equine piroplasmosis Asymptomatic carriers Nested PCR Theileria equi Babesia caballi Genotype |
| title | Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi |
| title_full | Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi |
| title_fullStr | Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi |
| title_full_unstemmed | Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi |
| title_short | Equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in France: Prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of Theileria equi and Babesia caballi |
| title_sort | equine piroplasmosis in different geographical areas in france prevalence heterogeneity of asymptomatic carriers and low genetic diversity of theileria equi and babesia caballi |
| topic | Equine piroplasmosis Asymptomatic carriers Nested PCR Theileria equi Babesia caballi Genotype |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877959X24001274 |
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