Molecular evidence of Ehrlichia canis, associated risk factors and hematobiochemical analysis in client owned and shelter cats of Pakistan

Ehrlichiosis is an infectious disease caused by Ehrlichia canis (E. canis) genus and arthropod vectors. It is considered endemic in many parts of the world among dogs. But due to lack of research on cats, there isn't enough information available. The limited reports available on feline Ehrlichiosis relied on the detection of morulae in leukocytes. The current study was designed to detect the molecular prevalence of E. canis in cats along with associated risk factors and hematological analysis. A total of 384 blood samples from cats were collected from various veterinary hospitals and shelter homes and tested by microscopy and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) to identify E. canis. The prevalence of E. canis has been reported at 5/384 (1.30%) and (14/384) 3.65% in cats through microscopy and PCR respectively. DNA sequences revealed significant resemblance with each other and variable resemblance with other Ehrlichia spp. sequences of different species from various countries already deposited on NCBI. Moreover, hematobiochemical and risk factor analysis were also carried out revealing significant results. This study reports first molecular detection of E. canis in client-owned and sheltered cats located in District Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Further studies should be conducted to identify its occurrence in the feline population of Pakistan so that control and prevention strategies must be planned accordingly. Due to the zoonotic impact of this pathogen and in perspective of one health, endemic regions of the disease should be identified and possible control measures should be implemented in these regions to minimize the spread of disease to non-endemic regions of the world and from animals to humans. •Ehrlichia canis is an emerging zoonotic tick-borne rickettsial pathogen of cats.•The study found cat samples positive for E. canis based on microscopy and PCR.•Phylogenetic analysis revealed variable resemblance of study isolates of E. canis with other Ehrlichia spp. sequences from different species.•Various risk factors and hematobiochemical alterations have significant association with E. canis infection in cats.