Microscopic and molecular studies of bovine Babesiosis in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq

Bovine Babesiosis, a tick-borne disease that causes major economic loss in cattle farms, is caused by Babesia species. The diagnosis of the disease is suspected through clinical features (e.g., anaemia and hematuria), which are routinely tested using Giemsa stain in veterinary laboratories. However, the causative agent must be annually investigated via molecular identifications to reduce the disease burden in endemic countries. The current study aimed to investigate the Babesia species circulating in Sulaymaniyah province, Kurdistan region of Iraq. Both microscopic (Giemsa) and molecular methods were exploited to discover the presence of the disease in cattle (n = 100). The morphological characteristics of merozoites and pyriform trophozoites were identified by light microscopy. Three sets of primers and conventional PCR were exploited to identify the genus Babesia and two common species in the region. The results showed that 7 % of the samples were positive for Babesia species using Giemsa stain while 28 % were positive using conventional polymerase chain reactions. The molecular study showed that two species including B. bovis (64.28 %) and B. bigemina (35.71 %) are present among cattle in the region. There were no differences in the protozoan infection based on either sex or age. Furthermore, both species are phylogenetically related to the strains circulating in Iraq, Turkey and USA. This suggests that babesiosis has a wide geographical distribution among different continents of the world. Further studies that include large number of samples are required to elucidate both genetic diversity and epidemiology of the disease. •Both microscopic and molecular biological methods are used to explore the causative species of Bovine babesiosis.•Molecular methods were more sensitive than microscopic methods, supporting veterinarians to diagnose and treat the disease.•No differences in morbidity were found according to the sex and age of the animals.•The two identified babesia species (B. bovis and B. bigemenia) are phylogenetically related to globally distributed species.