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Identification of Blastocystis spp. in Urban Rodents of Different Districts in Southwestern Iran: Subtype Distribution and Possible Zoonotic Potential

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Abstract

Purpose

Rodents are one of the most abundant and diverse species of mammals and have recently been identified as carriers of numerous human pathogens. The current study was conducted to assess the prevalence, subtype (STs) distribution, and zoonotic potential of Blastocystis spp. in various species of rodents in Shiraz, southwestern Iran.

Methods

For this aim, a total of 120 fresh fecal samples were collected from Mus musculus (n = 40), Rattus norvegicus (n = 40), and Rattus rattus (n = 40) in various municipality districts of Shiraz (6 out of 10 districts) between February and November 2020. Upon detecting parasites using light microscopy, a DNA fragment of the Blastocystis SSU rDNA gene was amplified using conventional PCR.

Results

By employing direct wet mount examination, 8 out of 120 fecal samples (6.7%; 2 from house mice, 3 from black rats, and 3 from brown rats) tested positive. Similarly, 5% (2/40) of house mice, 7.5% (3/40) of black rats, and 7.5% (3/40) of brown rats tested positive using the molecular method. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the Blastocystis infecting different rodent species in Shiraz belonged to two potentially zoonotic STs (ST1 and ST4). Accordingly, rodents should not be overlooked as potential reservoirs of zoonotic Blastocystis infections. Different sampled urban districts and their statistical association with reported prevalence rates were analyzed separately.

Conclusion

 Overall, the issue of the frequency and ST distribution of Blastocystis in urban rodents of Iran is still open to question and for a proper understanding, wider and more comprehensive studies are needed.

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Availability of data and materials

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available in the online version.

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Acknowledgements

The study was financially supported by the office of the vice-chancellor for research of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (Grant no. 98-01-01-19986). The study was the subject of the MD dissertation of Parand Eskandari.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, School of ParaMedicine, Ilam University of Medical Sciences, Ilam, Iran

    Saiyad Bastaminejad

  2. Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

    Parand Eskandari, Mostafa Omidian, Ali Pouryousef & Bahador Shahriari

  3. Department of Bacteriology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

    Mohammad Reza Mohammadi

  4. Department of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran

    Laya Shamsi

  5. Zoonoses Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran

    Ali Asghari

  6. Department of Biology and Control of Disease Vectors, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

    Saeed Shahabi

  7. Basic Sciences in Infectious Diseases Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

    Bahador Shahriari

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  1. Saiyad Bastaminejad
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  2. Parand Eskandari
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Contributions

BS conceived and designed the study. AA, PE, SS, LS, MO, and AP had a role in methodology and investigation. AA and PE performed the molecular analysis. AA, SB, and MRM wrote the manuscript. SB critically revised the manuscript. All the authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Bahador Shahriari.

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Bastaminejad, S., Eskandari, P., Mohammadi, M.R. et al. Identification of Blastocystis spp. in Urban Rodents of Different Districts in Southwestern Iran: Subtype Distribution and Possible Zoonotic Potential. Acta Parasit. 69, 922–928 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11686-024-00815-0

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