Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Makerere, P.O. Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda.
Vet Parasitol. 2011 Feb 10;175(3-4):212-9. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2010.10.032. Epub 2010 Oct 21.
Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) are considered to be an important reservoir for various tick-borne haemoparasites of veterinary importance. In this study we have compared the haemoparasite carrier prevalence in buffalo from four geographically isolated national parks in Uganda [Lake Mburo National Park (LMNP), Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP), Murchison Falls National Park (MFNP) and Kidepo Valley National Park (KVNP)]. Differences were seen in haemoparasite prevalence in buffalo from the four national parks. All the buffalo sampled in LMNP were carriers of Theileria parva however, buffalo from MFNP and KVNP, which are both located in the north of Uganda, were negative for T. parva. Interestingly, 95% of buffalo in the northern part of QENP were T. parva positive, however all buffalo sampled in the south of the park were negative. A high multiplicity of infection was recorded in all the buffalo found to be carrying T. parva, with evidence of at least nine parasite genotypes in some animals. Most of the buffalo sampled in all four national parks were carriers of T. mutans and T. velifera, however none were carriers of T. taurotragi, Babesia bovis, Babesia bigemina, Ehrlichia bovis or Ehrlichia ruminantium. All the buffalo sampled from LMNP were positive for T. buffeli and T. sp. (buffalo) however, buffalo from the parks in the north of the country (KVNP and MFNP) were negative for these haemoparasites. Anaplasma centrale and Anaplasma marginale were circulating in buffalo from all four national parks. T. parva gene pools from two geographically separated populations of buffalo in two of the national parks in Uganda (LMNP and QENP) were compared. The T. parva populations in the two national parks were distinct, indicating that there was limited gene flow between the populations. The results presented highlight the complexity of tick-borne pathogen infections in buffalo and the significant role that buffalo may play as reservoir hosts for veterinary haemoparasites that have the potential to cause severe disease in domestic cattle.
非洲野水牛（Syncerus caffer）被认为是各种具有重要兽医意义的蜱传血液寄生虫的重要宿主。在这项研究中，我们比较了来自乌干达四个地理上隔离的国家公园（姆布罗国家公园[LMNP]、伊丽莎白女王国家公园[QENP]、默奇森瀑布国家公园[MFNP]和基德波谷国家公园[KVNP]）的水牛血液寄生虫携带率。来自四个国家公园的水牛血液寄生虫携带率存在差异。在 LMNP 采样的所有水牛均携带小泰勒虫（Theileria parva），而来自位于乌干达北部的 MFNP 和 KVNP 的水牛则未检测到 T. parva。有趣的是，QENP 北部 95%的水牛 T. parva 阳性，但在公园南部采样的所有水牛均为阴性。在所有携带 T. parva 的水牛中均记录到高多重感染，一些动物体内至少有 9 种寄生虫基因型的证据。在所有四个国家公园采样的大多数水牛均携带 T. mutans 和 T. velifera，但均未携带 T. taurotragi、牛巴贝斯虫（Babesia bovis）、双芽巴贝斯虫（Babesia bigemina）、牛埃立克体（Ehrlichia bovis）或牛环形泰勒虫（Ehrlichia ruminantium）。在 LMNP 采样的所有水牛均对 T. buffeli 和 T. sp.（水牛）呈阳性反应，但来自该国北部公园（KVNP 和 MFNP）的水牛则对这些血液寄生虫呈阴性反应。中央无形体（Anaplasma centrale）和边缘无形体（Anaplasma marginale）在来自四个国家公园的水牛中传播。比较了乌干达两个国家公园（LMNP 和 QENP）两个地理上分离的水牛种群的 T. parva 基因库。两个国家公园的 T. parva 种群存在明显差异，表明种群之间的基因流动有限。所呈现的结果强调了水牛中蜱传病原体感染的复杂性，以及水牛作为具有潜在严重疾病的兽医血液寄生虫的宿主的重要作用，这些寄生虫可能对家牛造成严重疾病。
