Isolation and Characterization of NovelRibotypes Infecting Domestic and Wild Birds in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

, a single-celled protozoan parasite, is a causative agent of the disease trichomonosis, which is distributed worldwide and has recently been highlighted as a pandemic threat to several wild bird species. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and genotypic diversity ofin Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. For this purpose, 273 oral swab samples from different bird species (feral pigeoncommon mynahchickenturkey, and ducks) were collected and tested forinfection with InPouch™ TV culture kits. The results showed that the overall prevalence ofin these samples was 26.4% (= 72). The PCRs were used to detect the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of, and the results of the sequence analysis indicated genetic variation. Among 48 sequences, we found 15 different ribotypes, of which 12 were novel. Three had been previously described as ribotypes A, C, and II. To our knowledge, this study demonstrated the presence ofstrain diversity in Saudi Arabian birds for the first time and revealed that ribotypes A and C are predominant among Riyadh birds.