Beta
405499

PROTOZOAL AND RICKETTSIAL INFECTIONS AMONG CLINICALLY ILL PIGEONS IN ASSIUT, EGYPT: PREVALENCE, BIODIVERSITY, AND POTENTIAL PUBLIC RISK

Article

Last updated: 20 Jan 2025

Subjects

-

Tags

Parasitology

Abstract

Pigeons (Columba livia) are closely related to humans and serve various purposes as birds. Both domestic and racing pigeon (Columba livia) populations are vulnerable to several protozoal infections that pose health challenges to the pigeons and may impact public health. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence, biodiversity, and effects of protozoan infections in domestic and racing pigeons in Assiut Governorate, focusing on zoonotic infections. A total of 140 clinically ill pigeons, comprising 92 domestic and 48 racing pigeons of varying ages, were examined for gastrointestinal, blood, and tissue protozoal infections from February 2023 to April 2024. The birds were necropsied and examined for gastrointestinal, blood, and tissue protozoal infections. The overall protozoal infection rate was 98.6% among the examined pigeons, which was higher in racing pigeons at 100%, compared to 97.8% in domestic pigeons. Additionally, the prevalence varied slightly with climate and age, showing higher rates in colder climates and among squabs. The commonly observed protozoan was Trichomonas sp., found in 90% of the samples (126 out of 140), followed by Cryptosporidium sp. at 48.6% (68/140), Atoxoplasma at 37.1% (52/140), and Haemoproteus at 34.3% (49/140). Leucocytozoon had a prevalence of 14.3% (20/140), while both Toxoplasma and Ehrlichia  had the same prevalence of 12.9% (18/140). Aegyptianella was found in 11.4% (16/140) of samples. Microsporidia had a prevalence of 7.1% (10/140), and Eimeria and Plasmodium each had a prevalence of 5.7% (8/140). The least frequently observed protozoan was Cyclospora, found in 2.9% of the samples (4/140). This research highlights the prevalence and diversity of protozoal infections in pigeons and the public health risks associated with some protozoa's zoonotic nature. This emphasizes the need for targeted control measures to reduce the impact of these parasites on pigeon health.

DOI

10.21608/avmj.2025.336497.1471

Keywords

Pigeon, Race, domestic, Zoonotic Protozoa, Toxoplasma, Trichomonas sp, Cryptosporidium, Atoxoplasma, and Haemoproteus, Agyptenella, Leucocytozoan sp, Plasmodium sp

Authors

First Name

ALAA

Last Name

ABD EL-SALAMA

MiddleName

M.

Affiliation

Private Veterinary Clinic

Email

alaa2020@yahoo.com

City

assiut

Orcid

-

First Name

AHMED

Last Name

DYAB

MiddleName

K.

Affiliation

2a Department of Medical Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, 71526 Assiut, Egypt. 2b Department of Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, Badr University in Assiut, New Nasser City, Assiut, Egypt

Email

ahmed2015@aun.edu.eg

City

assiut

Orcid

0000-0002-4021-7904

First Name

MOHSEN

Last Name

ARAFA

MiddleName

I.

Affiliation

Animal Health Research Institute (Parasitology), Agriculture Research Center (ARC) Assiut Lab. Egypt

Email

mohsenpara22@yahoo.com

City

assiut

Orcid

-

First Name

ASMAA

Last Name

NASR

MiddleName

A.E.

Affiliation

Animal Health Research Institute (Poultry Diseases), Agriculture Research Center (ARC) Assiut Lab. Egypt

Email

asmaa.abdelghafar66@vet.aun.edu.eg

City

assiut

Orcid

-

First Name

SALWA

Last Name

ABD- ELRAHMAN

MiddleName

MAHMOUD

Affiliation

Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Assiut University, 71526 Assiut

Email

salwamahmoud@aun.edu.eg

City

assiut

Orcid

0000-0002-0319-7713

Volume

71

Article Issue

184

Related Issue

52949

Issue Date

2025-01-01

Receive Date

2024-11-14

Publish Date

2025-01-01

Page Start

672

Page End

683

Print ISSN

1012-5973

Online ISSN

2314-5226

Link

https://avmj.journals.ekb.eg/article_405499.html

Detail API

http://journals.ekb.eg?_action=service&article_code=405499

Order

405,499

Type

Research article

Type Code

1,840

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

Assiut Veterinary Medical Journal

Publication Link

https://avmj.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

PROTOZOAL AND RICKETTSIAL INFECTIONS AMONG CLINICALLY ILL PIGEONS IN ASSIUT, EGYPT: PREVALENCE, BIODIVERSITY, AND POTENTIAL PUBLIC RISK

Details

Type

Article

Created At

20 Jan 2025