Host range and geographical distribution of Babesia sp. Mymensingh

Bovine babesiosis represents a serious threat to the cattle industry in the tropics and subtropics. Although severalBabesiaspecies infect cattle, onlyB.bovis,B.bigeminaandB. divergensare known to cause clinical babesiosis. However, our recent study demonstrated that the newly discoveredBabesiasp. Mymensingh might be a virulent species capable of causing clinical babesiosis in cattle. The objective of this study was to determine the host range and geographical distribution ofBabesiasp. Mymensingh on a global scale. A total of 2,860 archived DNA samples from 2,263 cattle in Sri Lanka (n = 672), the Philippines (n = 408), Vietnam (n = 460), Uganda (n = 409), Brazil (n = 164) and Argentina (n = 150); 419 buffalo in Sri Lanka (n = 327) and Vietnam (n = 92); and 127 goats and 51 sheep in Vietnam were screened using aBabesiasp. Mymensingh-specific PCR assay.Babesiasp. Mymensingh infection was detected in cattle, buffalo, sheep and goats. Cattle of all countries surveyed in this study except Brazil were found to be infected withBabesiasp. Mymensingh. The highest positive rates were recorded in cattle from the Philippines (11.3%) and Vietnam (9.6%), followed by Argentina (4.7%), Sri Lanka (1.5%) and Uganda (1.0%). Buffalo were found to be infected with this parasite in Sri Lanka (1.2%) and Vietnam (10.9%). Unexpectedly,Babesiasp. Mymensingh was also detected in sheep (2.0%) and goats (1.3%) from Vietnam. These findings were confirmed by PCR amplicon sequencing. In conclusion, our present findings indicate thatBabesiasp. Mymensingh, which infects cattle, buffalo, sheep and goats, is endemic in Asia, Africa and South America.