AUTHOR=Zhao Wei , Sun Lijie , Liu Li , Jiang Aiying , Xiao Qiang , Tan Feng 

TITLE=Host specificity and zoonotic Enterocytozoon bieneusi genotypes in wild rodents from the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region and Liaoning Province of China

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

VOLUME=14

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2024.1409685

DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2024.1409685

ISSN=2235-2988

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p>Wild rodents can serve as reservoirs or carriers of <italic>E. bieneusi</italic>, thereby enabling parasite transmission to domestic animals and humans. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of <italic>E. bieneusi</italic> in wild rodents from the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region and Liaoning Province of China. Moreover, to evaluate the potential for zoonotic transmission at the genotype level, a genetic analysis of the isolates was performed.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>A total of 486 wild rodents were captured from two provinces in China. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed to amplify the vertebrate <italic>cytochrome b</italic> (<italic>cytb</italic>) gene in the fecal DNA of the rodents to detect their species. The genotype of <italic>E. bieneusi</italic> was determined <italic>via</italic> PCR amplification of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA. The examination of genetic characteristics and zoonotic potential requires the application of similarity and phylogenetic analysis.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>The infection rates of <italic>E. bieneusi</italic> in the four identified rodent species were 5.2% for <italic>Apodemus agrarius</italic> (n = 89), 4.5% for <italic>Cricetulus barabensis</italic> (n = 96), 11.3% for <italic>Mus musculus</italic> (n = 106), and 38.5% for <italic>Rattus norvegicus</italic> (n = 195). Infection was detected at an average rate of 17.4% among 486 rodents. Of the 11 identified genotypes, nine were known: SHR1 (detected in 32 samples), D (30 samples), EbpA (9 samples), PigEbITS7 (8 samples), HNR-IV (6 samples), Type IV (5 samples), HNR-VII (2 samples), HNH7 (1 sample), and HNPL-V (1 sample). Two novel genotypes were also discovered, NMR-I and NMR-II, each comprising one sample. The genotypes were classified into group 1 and group 13 <italic>via</italic> phylogenetic analysis.</p></sec><sec><title>Discussion</title><p>Based on the initial report, <italic>E. bieneusi</italic> is highly prevalent and genetically diverse in wild rodents residing in the respective province and region. This indicates that these animals are crucial for the dissemination of <italic>E. bieneusi</italic>. Zoonotic <italic>E. bieneusi</italic>-carrying animals present a significant hazard to local inhabitants. Therefore, it is necessary to increase awareness regarding the dangers presented by these rodents and reduce their population to prevent environmental contamination.</p></sec>