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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, September 2005, p. 4992-4997, Vol. 71, No. 9
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.9.4992-4997.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Sheep May Not Be an Important Zoonotic Reservoir for Cryptosporidium and Giardia Parasites

Una M. Ryan,1* Caroline Bath,1 Ian Robertson,1 Carolyn Read,1 Aileen Elliot,1 Linda Mcinnes,1 Rebecca Traub,1 and Brown Besier2

Division of Health Sciences, School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia 6150,1 Department of Agriculture Western Australia, Albany, Western Australia, Australia2

Received 22 November 2004/ Accepted 28 March 2005

Little is known of the prevalence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia parasites in sheep and the genotypes that they harbor, although potentially sheep may contribute significantly to contamination of watersheds. In the present study, conducted in Western Australia, a total of 1,647 sheep fecal samples were screened for the presence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia spp. using microscopy, and a subset (n = 500) were screened by PCR and genotyped. Analysis revealed that although both parasites were detected in a high proportion of samples by PCR (44% and 26% for Giardia and Cryptosporidium spp., respectively), with the exception of one Cryptosporidium hominis isolate, the majority of isolates genotyped are not commonly found in humans. These results suggest that the public health risk of sheep-derived Cryptosporidium and Giardia spp. in catchment areas and effluent may be overestimated and warrant further investigation.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Division of Health Sciences, School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia 6150. Phone: 61 89360 2482. Fax: 61 89310 414. E-mail: Una.Ryan{at}murdoch.edu.au.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, September 2005, p. 4992-4997, Vol. 71, No. 9
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.9.4992-4997.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

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