<i>Cryptosporidium proventriculi</i> in Captive Cockatiels (<i>Nymphicus hollandicus</i>)
Mariele Fernanda da Cruz Panegossi,
Giovanni Widmer,
Walter Bertequini Nagata,
Bruno César Miranda Oliveira,
Elis Domingos Ferrari,
Jancarlo Ferreira Gomes,
Marcelo Vasconcelos Meireles,
Alex Akira Nakamura,
Thaís Rabelo do Santos-Doni,
Luiz da Silveira Neto,
Katia Denise Saraiva Bresciani
Affiliations
Mariele Fernanda da Cruz Panegossi
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Giovanni Widmer
Department of Infectious Disease & Global Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University, North Grafton, MA 01536, USA
Walter Bertequini Nagata
Escritório de Defesa Agropecuária, Coordenadoria de Defesa Agropecuária, Secretaria de Agricultura e Abastecimento do Estado de São Paulo, Lins 16400-050, São Paulo, Brazil
Bruno César Miranda Oliveira
União das Faculdades dos Grandes Lagos (Unilago), São José do Rio Preto 15030-070, São Paulo, Brazil
Elis Domingos Ferrari
União das Faculdades dos Grandes Lagos (Unilago), São José do Rio Preto 15030-070, São Paulo, Brazil
Jancarlo Ferreira Gomes
Faculdade de Ciências Médicas e Instituto de Computação, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas 13083-887, São Paulo, Brazil
Marcelo Vasconcelos Meireles
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Alex Akira Nakamura
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Thaís Rabelo do Santos-Doni
Instituto de Ciências Agrárias (ICA), Universidade Federal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri (UFVJM), Avenida Universitários, Unaí 36830-000, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Luiz da Silveira Neto
Imunologia e Vacinologia, curso de Engenharia de Bioprocessos e Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Tocantins (UFT), Gurupi 77410-530, Tocantins, Brazil
Katia Denise Saraiva Bresciani
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus) are among the most commonly sold psittacines pets. The aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of Cryptosporidium spp. in domestic N. hollandicus and identify risk factors for this infection. We collected fecal samples from 100 domestic cockatiels in the city of Araçatuba, São Paulo, Brazil. Feces from birds of both genders and older than two months were collected. Owners were asked to complete a questionnaire to identify how they handle and care for their birds. Based on nested PCR targeting the 18S rRNA gene, the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in the cockatiels sampled was 9.00%, 6.00% based on Malachite green staining, 5.00% based on modified Kinyoun straining, and 7.00% when the Malachite green was combined with Kinyoun. Applying multivariate logistic regression to test the association between Cryptosporidium proventriculi positivity and potential predictors showed that gastrointestinal alterations was a significant predictor (p C. proventriculi. In summary, this study demonstrates the occurrence of C. proventriculi in captive cockatiels.
