Molecular prevalence and associated risk factors of Entamoeba spp. in donkeys in Shanxi Province, North China

作者：Ze-Dong Zhang, Han-Dan Xiao, Dongyang Wang, Nan Su, Xun-Zhi Liu, Z. Wang, Shi-Chen Xie, Xing‐Quan Zhu, Shuo Zhang, Wen-Wei Gao · 发表于：Parasites & Vectors · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1186/s13071-025-06671-9 · 被引用次数：6 · 研究领域：Amoebic Infections and Treatments、Parasitic Infections and Diagnostics、Parasites and Host Interactions

BACKGROUND: The intestinal protozoa Entamoeba spp. can infect humans and various animals, including donkeys, causing diarrhea and malabsorption and presenting significant risks to animal husbandry and public health. Most Entamoeba species are not pathogenic except for Entamoeba histolytica. China has among the highest rates of donkey farming worldwide. Donkey (Equus asinus) farming is increasingly important in China because of their draft and medicinal value; however, epidemiological data on Entamoeba spp. in donkeys remains limited globally. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Entamoeba in donkeys in Shanxi Province, North China, and assess associated risk factors using a molecular approach. METHODS: Fecal samples of 815 donkeys from three representative geographical locations in Shanxi Province were collected to investigate the presence of Entamoeba spp. A portion of the small-subunit rRNA gene (SSU rRNA) was amplified and sequenced to determine the prevalence and species/genotypes of Entamoeba spp. Statistical analysis of possible risk factors was performed using Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) 26.0 software. The phylogenetic relationship of Entamoeba spp. was reconstructed using the neighbor-joining (NJ) method in Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (Mega) 7.0 software. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of Entamoeba spp. in donkeys in Shanxi Province was 7.12% (58/815). Two species (Entamoeba sp. RL9 and Entamoeba equi) were identified by...