Analysis of protozoa parasites in goats coprologies, in particular amoebas, in Gran Canaria Island

Abstract

A variety of protozoa can be found in the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants. Some of them are classified as pathogens, as they have the ability to produce disease in the infected animal, such as Cryptosporidium, Eimeria or Giardia. The consequence of infection by these is the economic losses. Other protozoa are considered non-pathogenic or low pathogenicity, such as Entamoeba, Chilomastix or Blastocystis. This group have been poorly investigated. In this study, we have performed a survey in adult goats of Gran Canaria Island (Spain) focused to this last group of protozoa, paying special attention to genus Entamoeba. For this purpose, faecal samples were taken from 96 animals from different locations of Gran Canaria, for further processing and microscopic visualization. All farms tested positive for Entamoeba spp., only one farm was positive for Chilomastix, and eleven farms tested positive for Eimeria spp. Coinfection of Entamoeba spp. and other protozoa was observed in 26% of the samples analysed. The frequency of Entamoeba spp. infection in goats found in this study is much higher than in most of the previous surveys carried out in goats and the intensity of the infection ranged from moderate to high. The size of the cysts found was similar than E. bovis from cattle, but morphological differences were found to Entamoeba spp. reported in small ruminants in other studies, so further research is needed to ascertain if there are several species of Entamoeba affecting goats. Entamoeba has been reported to be non-pathogenic, in agreement, most farms had a moderate intensity, and no animals showed symptoms. Although the presence of Chilomastix was low, it’s a remarkable finding, since is the first report of this protozoa in goats from Spain, and because of the zoonotic potential of this protozoa. From the present study we can conclude that a high percentage of goats of the island are infected by Entamoeba spp., and that coinfections with other protozoa is relatively frequent