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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #318047
Title: Sarcocystis oreamni n. sp. from the mountain goat (oreamnos americanus)

Author
item CALER-BERNAL, RAFAEL - Non ARS Employee
item VAN WILPE, EMA - University Of Pretoria
item WHITE, KEVIN - Alaska Department Of Fish And Game
item VERMA, SHIV - Non ARS Employee
item CERQUEIRA-CEZAR, CAMILA - Non ARS Employee
item Dubey, Jitender

Submitted to: Parasitology Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/25/2015
Publication Date: 10/29/2015
Citation: Caler-Bernal, R., Van Wilpe, E., White, K., Verma, S., Cerqueira-Cezar, C., Dubey, J.P. 2015. Sarcocystis oreamni n. sp. from the mountain goat (oreamnos americanus). Parasitology Research. 114:4135-4141.

Interpretive Summary: Coccidian parasites in the phylum Apicomplexa include myriad parasites that are transmitted when a definitive host consumes the infected tissue of an intermediate host, or when an intermediate host consumes water or food contaminated with the feces of a definitive host. Toxoplasma gondii is an important zoonotic parasite that compromises food safety by infecting tissues of food animals and by contaminating produce. This parasite is difficult to distinguish from many similar parasites that cause no known risk to human health. Among these are parasites in the genus Sarcocystis known to cause encephalitis in a variety of mammalian and avian hosts. Here we describe 2 species of Sarcocystis in mountain goat, to remove the existing confusion in literature. When species names are applied to organisms lacking meticulously described attributes and lacking voucher reference materials, imprecise scientific communication and incorrect diagnoses result.” This paper should be of interest to biologists, parasitologists, and veterinarians.

Technical Abstract: Numerous species of Sarcocystis have been reported from wild ruminants but none has been named from the Rocky Mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus). Mature sarcocysts were found in frozen muscle samples of 3 of 7 mountain goats from Alaska, USA. Two morphological types of sarcocysts were found; 1 had Sarcocystis cornagliai-like sarcocysts, previously named from the Alpine ibex (Capra ibex) from Europe. Two other goats were infected with a new species, Sarcocystis oreamni. Sarcocystis oreamni sarcocysts were microscopic with 2 µm thick sarcocyst wall. By transmission electron microscopy, the sarcocyst wall had 1.7 µm-thick with unusual molar tooth-like villar protusions (vp). The vp had electron dense core and 2 disc-shaped plaques at the tip with fine microtubules. Bradyzoites were 8.6-9.1 µm long. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) identified in 18S rRNA, and 28S rRNA loci of rDNA regions that suggested S. oreamni molecularly apart from related species. The phylogenetic analysis based 18S rRNA, and 28S rRNA sequences suggested S. oreamni is related with Sarcocystis species that employ member of Canidae family as their definitive host mainly S. capracanis, S. tarandivulpes, and S. tenella.