Molecular Prevalence of Three Chicken Gastrointestinal Tract Pathogens and Phylogenetic Characterization of Tetratrichomonas gallinarum in Türkiye

Abstract

Several species of parasites infect chickens and can cause economic losses. Histomonas meleagridis, its intermediate host Heterakis gallinarum, and Tetratrichomonas gallinarum are the most common parasites of poultry. The current study aimed to determine the molecular prevalence and phylogenetic relationships of H. meleagridis, He. gallinarum, and T. gallinarum in chickens in Central Anatolia Region of Türkiye. For this, a total of 100 fecal specimens from chickens were analyzed by using a PCR assay targeting the 18S rRNA gene region of H. meleagridis and T. gallinarum and the mtDNA COI gene region of He. gallinarum. PCR analysis identified T. gallinarum in 11 (1.1%) specimens, whereas other species were not found in all the examined specimens. Positive specimens were detected only in backyard chickens. Sequence analyses identified two novel genotypes named TRTgal1 and TRTgal3, and one known genotype (TRTgal2) of T. gallinarum. The TRTgal2 genotype was found to be identical to the human genotype (AY247746) and the four avian genotypes. Phylogenetic analyses of the obtained genotypes clustered in separate monophyletic clades. Our study provides the first data on T. gallinarum in chickens in Türkiye and contributes to public health with the identified zoonotic genotype and knowledge of the epidemiology of this parasite.