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. 2010 Aug;48(8):2703-8.
doi: 10.1128/JCM.02266-09. Epub 2010 Jun 2.

Babesia lengau sp. nov., a novel Babesia species in cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus, Schreber, 1775) populations in South Africa

Anna-Mari Bosman  1 , Marinda C Oosthuizen, Michael A Peirce, Estelle H Venter, Barend L Penzhorn
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Babesia lengau sp. nov., a novel Babesia species in cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus, Schreber, 1775) populations in South Africa

Anna-Mari Bosman et al. J Clin Microbiol. 2010 Aug.

Abstract

In a previous paper, we reported on a large number of cheetah blood specimens that gave positive signals only for Babesia and/or Theileria genus-specific probes on the reverse line blot (RLB) assay, indicating the presence of a novel species or variant of an existing species. Some of these specimens were investigated further by microscopic, serological, sequencing, and phylogenetic analyses. The near-full-length 18S rRNA genes of 13 samples, as well as the second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) region, were amplified, cloned, and sequenced. A species-specific RLB probe, designed to target the hypervariable V4 region of the 18S rRNA gene for detection of the novel Babesia sp., was used to screen an additional 137 cheetah blood specimens for the presence of the species. The prevalence of infection was 28.5%. Here we describe the morphology and phylogenetic relationships of the novel species, which we have named Babesia lengau sp. nov.

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Figures

FIG. 1.
FIG. 1.
Babesia lengau sp. nov. from Acinonyx jubatus. (a to c) Small ring-form trophozoites. (d) Parasite with early division of chromatin. (e) Parasite almost ready to divide. (f) Parasite dividing by binary fission into two trophozoites. Bar = 2 μm.
FIG. 2.
FIG. 2.
Microscopic view of Babesia lengau sp. nov. Slides were screened under a Zeiss microscope with a ×100 oil immersion objective. Measurements were made with a Leitz screw micrometer calibrated against a standard stage micrometer. Images were captured with a Nikon Coolpix 4500 digital camera attached to a Zeiss triocular microscope.
FIG. 3.
FIG. 3.
Results of neighbor-joining analysis of the 18S rRNA gene, showing the phylogenetic relationship of Babesia lengau sp. nov. with other known Babesia and Theileria species. Branch lengths are proportional to the estimated genetic distances between the species. The scale bar represents the percent nucleotide difference. Plasmodium falciparum (M19172) was used as the outgroup.
FIG. 4.
FIG. 4.
Results of phylogenetic analysis of the ITS2 genes of Babesia lengau sp. nov. and other piroplasm species.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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