Department of Protozoology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Ratchawithi Road, Ratchathewi, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand.
Faculty of Medical Technology, Rangsit University, Pathum Thani, 1200, Thailand.
BMC Vet Res. 2021 Jun 2;17(1):203. doi: 10.1186/s12917-021-02904-y.
Pentatrichomonas hominis inhabits the digestive tracts of several vertebrates, such as humans, monkeys, pigs, dogs, cats and rats. This protozoan was originally considered a commensal of the digestive tract but has subsequently been identified as a potential zoonotic parasite and a causative agent of diarrhoea. Molecular techniques are considered more sensitive and specific to detect P. hominis. This study aimed to determine the presence and genetic diversity of P. hominis in animals in Thailand. A total of 403 faecal samples were collected from 119 cats, 55 dogs, 73 goats, 35 monkeys, 55 cattle and 66 pigs, and the presence of P. hominis was determined using the nested polymerase chain reaction method. Sequence analysis of small-subunit ribosomal RNA genes was used to determine the genotype of the organism.
Twenty-six samples (26/403, 6.45%) were positive for P. hominis. The highest prevalence was found in cats (21/119; 17.65%), followed by cattle (3/55; 5.45%) and dogs (2/55; 3.64%). Seven out of 26 nucleotides demonstrated 100% sequence identity with existing sequences; additionally, 16 novel sequence patterns were identified. All nucleotide sequences of P. hominis-positive samples were shown in the same branch with the previously described P. hominis sequences found in humans, dogs and goat.
This is the first study on P. hominis infections in animals in Thailand. Our findings revealed that the prevalence of P. hominis was significantly higher in cats than in cattle and dogs. Cats were the main reservoir host; however, P. hominis can infect several kinds of animals. Therefore, the proper waste management of animals is necessary to reduce and prevent infection in the community.
五毛滴虫原虫栖息在包括人类、猴子、猪、狗、猫和老鼠在内的几种脊椎动物的消化道中。这种原生动物最初被认为是消化道的共生体，但后来被确定为一种潜在的人畜共患寄生虫和腹泻的病原体。分子技术被认为更敏感和特异，可以检测到五毛滴虫。本研究旨在确定泰国动物中五毛滴虫的存在和遗传多样性。共采集了 119 只猫、55 只狗、73 只山羊、35 只猴子、55 头牛和 66 头猪的 403 份粪便样本，使用巢式聚合酶链反应方法检测五毛滴虫的存在。小亚基核糖体 RNA 基因序列分析用于确定该生物体的基因型。
26 份样本（26/403，6.45%）检测到五毛滴虫阳性。猫的阳性率最高（21/119；17.65%），其次是牛（3/55；5.45%）和狗（2/55；3.64%）。26 个核苷酸中有 7 个与现有序列完全相同；此外，还发现了 16 个新的序列模式。所有五毛滴虫阳性样本的核苷酸序列都与先前在人类、狗和山羊中描述的五毛滴虫序列在同一分支中。
这是泰国首次对动物五毛滴虫感染的研究。我们的研究结果表明，猫的五毛滴虫感染率明显高于牛和狗。猫是主要的储存宿主；然而，五毛滴虫可以感染多种动物。因此，需要对动物进行适当的废物管理，以减少和预防社区感染。
