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Leading report of molecular prevalence of tick borne Anaplasma marginale and Theileria ovis in yaks (Bos grunniens) from Pakistan

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Abstract

Domestic yak (Bos grunniens) is an economically important feature of the mountainous region of Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan where agriculture is restricted and yaks play multiple roles which includes being a source of milk, meat, hides, fuel and power. However little is known about the parasitic infections in Pakistani yaks. Aim of this research was to report the prevalence and genetic diversity of protozoa parasite (Theileria ovis, 18 S rDNA gene was targeted) and an obligate bacterium (Anaplasma marginale, msp-1 gene was amplified) in the blood that was sampled from 202 yaks collected from four districts in Gilgit-Baltistan during January 2023 till January 2024. Results revealed that 6/202 (3%) yaks were of Theileria ovis while 8/202 (4%) were Anaplasma marginale infected. Positive PCR products of both parasites were confirmed by DNA sequencing and their similarity with previously available pathogen sequences was determined by BLAST analysis. Phylogenetic tree indicated that isolates of both parasites displayed genetic. Anaplasma marginale infection varied with the sampling districts and Shigar district had the highest rate of bacterial infection. Cows were significantly more prone to Theileria ovis infection than bulls. Calf and hybrid yaks were more prone to Anaplasma marginale infection. In conclusion, this is the first report that yaks residing the Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan are infected with Theileria ovis and Anaplasma marginale. Similar larger scales studies are recommended in various regions of Gilgit-Baltistan to document the infection rates of these parasites to formulate strategies that will lead to the effective control of these pathogens.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Livestock, Dairy Development and Poultry Production Department of Gilgit-Baltistan, Virtual University of Pakistan, Islamabad and the YCF through the grant P2023/1 for the collection and processing of yak samples from different districts of the Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan.

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Author notes

  1. Muqaddas Nawaz and Rehmat Ullah have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Zoology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, 60800, Pakistan

    Muqaddas Nawaz, Rehmat Ullah, Muhammad Naeem & Furhan Iqbal

  2. Department of Biology, Virtual University of Pakistan, Lahore, Pakistan

    Rehmat Ullah

  3. Department of Physiology, Islamia University Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur, Pakistan

    Zia Ur Rehman

  4. Department of Zoology, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Mardan, Pakistan

    Afshan Khan

  5. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ibn Zohr University, Laayoune, 70000, Morocco

    Mohammed Bourhia

  6. Livestock and Dairy Development Department, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan

    Muhammad Mudassir Sohail & Takbir Ali

  7. Department of Botany and Zoology, Bacha Khan University, Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 24420, Pakistan

    Adil Khan

  8. Department of Biological Sciences, Virtual University of Pakistan, Islamabad, Pakistan

    Tanveer Hussain

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  1. Muqaddas Nawaz
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Contributions

FI and TH had designed and supervised this study. MMS, TA ZUR and TH collected the yak samples and epidemiological data. Mu N, MN and MA performed the wet lab experiments. TH, Ad K and Af K performed the phylogenetic analysis. AK and MB performed the statistical analysis. All authors contributed to the writing of manuscript and approved the final version for submission.

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Correspondence to Adil Khan or Furhan Iqbal.

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Communicated by Yusuf Akhter.

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Nawaz, M., Ullah, R., Rehman, Z.U. et al. Leading report of molecular prevalence of tick borne Anaplasma marginale and Theileria ovis in yaks (Bos grunniens) from Pakistan. Arch Microbiol 206, 149 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-024-03916-6

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