Baker Eliza, Bower Lani, Gerhold Richard, Miller Debra
Biomedical and Diagnostic Sciences, University of Tennessee, 2407 River Drive, Room A233, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA.
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory, University of Wyoming, 1174 Snowy Range Road, Laramie, Wyoming 82070, USA.
J Wildl Dis. 2025 Jul 1;61(3):700-707. doi: 10.7589/JWD-D-24-00130.
Raptors may serve as both intermediate and definitive hosts for Sarcocystis spp. Past research has documented fatal encephalitis in raptors caused by various Sarcocystis spp., whereas other surveys have found a high prevalence of tissue cysts without evidence of disease. Little is known about the prevalence of Sarcocystis in raptors in the eastern USA. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of tissue cysts and histopathologic changes associated with Sarcocystis spp. infection in raptors in eastern Tennessee. Tissues of 33 raptors from Tennessee, USA, were assessed with histopathologic examination. Cysts consistent with Sarcocystis spp. were present in the heart, skeletal, or tracheal muscle of 11 (33%) raptors, without any associated inflammation. Tissues from histopathologic-positive raptors were then tested with PCR targeting of the 18S rRNA gene of Sarcocystis. Sequence analysis of PCR products revealed that six raptors had sequences most similar to Sarcocystis falcatula, and two had sequences most similar to Sarcocystis halieti. In addition, one S. falcatula-positive Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) had lymphoplasmacytic meningoencephalitis and was positive via immunohistochemistry for eastern equine encephalitis virus. Our study supports findings in other geographic regions that raptors commonly serve as hosts for Sarcocystis spp. without evidence of associated disease.
猛禽可能是肉孢子虫属的中间宿主和终末宿主。过去的研究记录了由各种肉孢子虫属引起的猛禽致命性脑炎，而其他调查发现组织囊肿的患病率很高，但没有疾病证据。在美国东部，关于猛禽中肉孢子虫的患病率知之甚少。本研究的目的是确定田纳西州东部猛禽中与肉孢子虫属感染相关的组织囊肿的发生情况和组织病理学变化。对来自美国田纳西州的33只猛禽的组织进行了组织病理学检查。在11只（33%）猛禽的心脏、骨骼肌或气管肌肉中发现了与肉孢子虫属一致的囊肿，没有任何相关炎症。然后对组织病理学阳性的猛禽组织进行针对肉孢子虫18S rRNA基因的PCR检测。PCR产物的序列分析显示，6只猛禽的序列与镰状肉孢子虫最相似，2只与哈氏肉孢子虫最相似。此外，一只感染镰状肉孢子虫的白头海雕（Haliaeetus leucocephalus）患有淋巴细胞性脑膜脑炎，通过免疫组织化学检测对东部马脑炎病毒呈阳性。我们的研究支持了其他地理区域的研究结果，即猛禽通常是肉孢子虫属的宿主，但没有相关疾病的证据。
