Prevalence and molecular characterization of Isospora spp. in canaries (Serinus canaria) kept in captivity

• Grant number: 19/13599-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2019
• End date: October 31, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Vasconcelos Meireles
• Grantee: Evelyn Lina Machado
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária (FMVA). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araçatuba. Araçatuba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Isosporosis is commonly found in passerine birds and represents one of the most important cause of enteritis in canaries, with mortality rates greater than 80%. To enable a more precise diagnosis, techniques such as morphological and morphometric description and the molecular characterization can be used; the combination of both techniques is considered the most safe and precise method to determine Isospora species. However, a few scientific researches have used the combination of both techniques to perform the characterization and differentiation of Isospora species from birds. The main objective of this research is to determine the prevalence of infection by Isospora spp. by using the morphological and morphometric analyses of oocysts and perform the molecular characterization of Isospora spp. in 385 samples of genomic DNA extracted from feces of canaries kept in captivity in the South and Southeast regions of Brazil, that have being exhibited at the Ornitology Championship 2015 from Brazil Ornithological Federation (FOB), from 07/09/2015 to 07/17/2015, in Itatiba/SP.