Investigation of an Autochthonous Outbreak of Bovine Besnoitiosis in Northwestern Sicily.

Veronica Cristina Neve,Miriana Coltraro,Filippo Spadola,Guido Ruggero Loria,Giuseppe Cascone,Roberto Puleio,Felice Salina,Francesco Antoci,Alessandro Stamilla

doi:10.3390/pathogens11020122

Veronica Cristina Neve, Miriana Coltraro + Show 7 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens11020122

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Abstract

Bovine besnoitiosis is a parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Besnoitia besnoiti, leading to infertility in bulls and abortions in cows. In Italy, it is considered an emerging disease, recently introduced by the importation of animals from Spain and France. In the last decade, many outbreaks have been reported and confirmed in native cattle, mostly in northern and central Italy. This study reports on an autochthonous outbreak of bovine besnoitiosis in two nearby farms located in northwestern Sicily. A 15-month-old Limousine bull born on the farm showed typical clinical signs of the chronic disease phase, such as edema of the scrotum with subsequent hyperkeratosis associated with eschars and thickening of the skin. A histopathological examination revealed the presence of Besnoitia tissue cysts containing bradyzoites in the eyes, tendons, testicles, dermis, and nictitating membrane. A serological investigation using a commercial ELISA kit revealed a high seroprevalence of the antibody anti-B. besnoiti (79.2% for the farms in this study). Clinical disease showed low prevalence (1.5%) despite the high seroprevalence of specific antibodies in the herd, confirming that bovine besnoitiosis is an emergent endemic pathogen in Sicily, but its clinical behavior still remains sporadic.

Highlights

Bovine besnoitiosis is caused by an infection of the intracellular protist parasite Besnoitia besnoiti, belonging to the genus Besnoitia, family Sarcocystidae, and phylumApicomplexa
Aside from the spread of the disease in the Italian peninsula, this study examines another endemic outbreak of bovine besnoitiosis in Sicily in 2020, which occurred in two farms located in the northeast of the region
In the last two decades, bovine besnoitiosis has been recognized as an endemic pathogen in many European countries, including Italy, where it is considered an emergent disease since autochthonous outbreaks were reported mostly in northern and central areas [23,24,25] and rarely in southern regions [21]

Summary

Introduction

Bovine besnoitiosis is caused by an infection of the intracellular protist parasite Besnoitia besnoiti, belonging to the genus Besnoitia, family Sarcocystidae, and phylumApicomplexa. Bovine besnoitiosis is caused by an infection of the intracellular protist parasite Besnoitia besnoiti, belonging to the genus Besnoitia, family Sarcocystidae, and phylum. 10 different species that cause infection have been identified, but only B. besnoiti causes several kinds of cutaneous damage and infertility in cattle. The lifecycle of B. besnoiti is still unclear because the definitive host is still unknown [1]. Transmission in cattle is thought to occur through ingestion of the sporulated oocysts in the feces of definitive hosts, by some bloodsucking insects that can directly transfer parasites from one animal to another or more frequently by natural mating. Infection due to insect bite seems to be more common than infection caused by oocyst ingestion, because the supposed final host could be a felid, as well as for the other species of Besnoitia [2]

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