First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran
Abstract Previous studies showed that the Eurasian sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus (Linnaeus, 1758) acts as the definitive host of the Sarcocystis halieti (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) Gjerde, Vikøren et Hamnes, 2017. Herein, we report macrocysts of S. halieti in the pectoral muscle of a Sparrowhawk in t...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-02-01
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| author | Alireza Sazmand Leili Moradi Pardis Almasi Reza Nabavi Petras Prakas |
| author_facet | Alireza Sazmand Leili Moradi Pardis Almasi Reza Nabavi Petras Prakas |
| author_sort | Alireza Sazmand |
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| description | Abstract Previous studies showed that the Eurasian sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus (Linnaeus, 1758) acts as the definitive host of the Sarcocystis halieti (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) Gjerde, Vikøren et Hamnes, 2017. Herein, we report macrocysts of S. halieti in the pectoral muscle of a Sparrowhawk in the west of Iran. Between September 2019 and December 2023, a total of 55 wild birds belonging to 8 orders, 9 families, 18 genera, and 21 species were examined in Hamedan province, western Iran. In one Eurasian sparrowhawk, macroscopic cysts resembling rice grains were observed in the breast muscle of the bird. None of the other examined birds were infested with macrosarcocysts. DNA extracted from sarcocysts was molecularly characterized at four nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers (the 18 S rRNA, 28 S rRNA, cox1 genes, and the ITS1 region). Sequence analysis confirmed the identity of the macrosarcocysts as Sarcocystis halieti. This is the first report of S. halieti in Asia. Sparrowhawk proved to act as both the definitive and intermediate host of Sarcocystis halieti. The phenomenon of the same species of Sarcocystis serving as both hosts is extremely rare among birds and needs to be studied further. |
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| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-32d1beece06b4bbca322e67abb65da182025-08-20T03:04:27ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-02-0115111410.1038/s41598-025-90666-0First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from IranAlireza Sazmand0Leili Moradi1Pardis Almasi2Reza Nabavi3Petras Prakas4Department of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Bu-Ali Sina UniversityDepartment of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Bu-Ali Sina UniversityDepartment of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Bu-Ali Sina UniversityDepartment of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Bu-Ali Sina UniversityLaboratory of Molecular Ecology, Nature Research CentreAbstract Previous studies showed that the Eurasian sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus (Linnaeus, 1758) acts as the definitive host of the Sarcocystis halieti (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) Gjerde, Vikøren et Hamnes, 2017. Herein, we report macrocysts of S. halieti in the pectoral muscle of a Sparrowhawk in the west of Iran. Between September 2019 and December 2023, a total of 55 wild birds belonging to 8 orders, 9 families, 18 genera, and 21 species were examined in Hamedan province, western Iran. In one Eurasian sparrowhawk, macroscopic cysts resembling rice grains were observed in the breast muscle of the bird. None of the other examined birds were infested with macrosarcocysts. DNA extracted from sarcocysts was molecularly characterized at four nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers (the 18 S rRNA, 28 S rRNA, cox1 genes, and the ITS1 region). Sequence analysis confirmed the identity of the macrosarcocysts as Sarcocystis halieti. This is the first report of S. halieti in Asia. Sparrowhawk proved to act as both the definitive and intermediate host of Sarcocystis halieti. The phenomenon of the same species of Sarcocystis serving as both hosts is extremely rare among birds and needs to be studied further.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-90666-0Sarcocystis HalietiWild birdWildlifePCRBird of prey |
| spellingShingle | Alireza Sazmand Leili Moradi Pardis Almasi Reza Nabavi Petras Prakas First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran Scientific Reports Sarcocystis Halieti Wild bird Wildlife PCR Bird of prey |
| title | First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran |
| title_full | First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran |
| title_fullStr | First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran |
| title_full_unstemmed | First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran |
| title_short | First report of Sarcocystis halieti in Asia: the genetic confirmation in muscles of the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) from Iran |
| title_sort | first report of sarcocystis halieti in asia the genetic confirmation in muscles of the eurasian sparrowhawk accipiter nisus from iran |
| topic | Sarcocystis Halieti Wild bird Wildlife PCR Bird of prey |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-90666-0 |
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