Molecular Characterization and Prevalence of Bovine Cryptosporidium Isolates in the Afyonkarahisar Region

Cryptosporidiosis is a zoonotic protozoan disease that affects humans and animals. This disease, which causes diarrhea, dehydration, weight loss, stunted growth, and death, especially in newborn calves, leads to economic losses. Early diagnosis of disease on cattle farms, and even taking preventive measures against it, is of great importance. This study aimed to identify the cryptosporidiosis species and prevalence in diarrheic cattle in the Afyonkarahisar region, where cattle farming is quite intensive. For this reason, a total of 188 fecal samples were obtained rectally from 152 diarrheic bovine calves (0-6 months) and 36 diarrheic cattle (≥ 6 months) from the farms. The specimens were analyzed for Cryptosporidium oocysts by the modified acid-fast staining (mAF) procedure. Whereas the frequency of bovine cryptosporidiosis was 9.2% (14/152) in diarrheic calves, no Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in the feces of diarrheic cattle older than six months. In the 14 identified Cryptosporidium infections, 13.6% were in calves aged 0 to 3 months, whereas 3.1% were in calves aged 3 to 6 months. The sequencing from the 14 isolates at the 18S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) loci indicated the detection of two Cryptosporidium species: C. parvum (64.2%) and C. bovis (35.7%). These findings highlight that C. parvum, one of the most important factors causing zoonoses, is the primary cause of neonatal cryptosporidial diarrhea in calves, and that more comprehensive epidemiological studies are needed to determine the epidemiology and etiology of cryptosporidiosis in this region.