Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Anaplasma platys infection risk in Egyptian dogs detected by PCR
By Selim, Abdelfattah et al.·Published in Parasites & vectors·2021·Department of Animal Medicine (Infectious Diseases)·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Molecular detection and risk factors for Anaplasma platys infection in dogs from Egypt.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs in Egypt was tested for a tick-borne infection called Anaplasma platys, which can cause low platelet counts and lead to health issues. The study found that about 6.4% of the dogs were infected, with female German shepherds without regular veterinary care being at a higher risk. Dogs with heavy tick infestations and those not receiving anti-tick treatments were also more likely to test positive. This research highlights the importance of regular veterinary care and tick prevention to protect dogs from this infection.
People also search for: dog tick-borne disease symptoms · German shepherd health issues · how to prevent ticks on dogs
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Anaplasma platys is a tick-borne bacterium which infects blood platelets of dogs, causing canine cyclic thrombocytopenia. The disease is distributed worldwide, particularly in the tropics and subtropics, but information on the epidemiology of A. platys infection in dogs is fragmentary in many countries, including Egypt. In this study, we investigated the prevalence and risk factors associated with A. platys infection in dogs from Egypt. METHODS: A conventional PCR targeting a fragment of the 16S rRNA gene of A. platys was used to screen 500 dogs from five North Egyptian governorates. DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis were performed for one of the positive samples. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of A. platys in the studied dogs was 6.4%. Females of the German shepherd breed without veterinary care had higher odds for A. platys positivity. High tick infestation and lack of anti-tick treatment were also identified as risk factors for A. platys infection. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the sequence obtained herein was closely related to sequences from Egypt, South Africa and Uruguay. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first large-scale epidemiological study of A. platys in Egypt, where female German shepherd dogs without veterinary care, as well as dogs with high tick infestation and without anti-tick treatment are at a higher risk of infection.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34446081/