Prevalence of spp. infection in rodents and chickens in Franceville, Gabon.

BACKGROUND AND AIM

spp. members of the phylum are obligate protozoan parasites capable of infecting various vertebrate hosts, including rodents and chickens. Infection caused by these parasites may lead to zoonotic diseases in humans. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of spp. in rodents and domestic chickens sampled in Franceville, Gabon.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Two hundred and eighty-five samples were collected, of which 185 samples were from rodents and 100 from domestic chickens. Microscopy after modified Ziehl-Neelsen staining and nested polymerase chain reaction targeting the small subunit (SSU) rRNA gene were used to examine spp.

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of oocysts was 55.8%, with a prevalence of 72.4% in rodents and 25.0% in domestic chickens. Molecular analysis showed that spp. were present in 4.0% of the samples. No significant correlation was observed between spp. carriage and sex or location in this study. These results indicate that spp. persist and circulate in the studied animal species in Franceville, Gabon.

CONCLUSION

Infection with is very common in rodents and chickens in Franceville. The potential risk of human contamination cannot be ruled out. More research should be conducted to characterize species circulating in rodents and chickens in Gabon. Such studies are essential to better understand the epidemiology of this protozoan and its potential impact on public health.