Molekulinė naminių pelėdų (Strix aluco) hemosporidinių parazitų diagnostika /

Avian haemosporidia are protists that parasitise the blood and internal organs of birds. They cause various diseases such as malaria, haemoproteosis and leukocytosis. There are more than 200 species of haemosporidia in the families Haemoproteidae, Leucocytozoidae and Plasmodiidae. Their study is important because they provide an excellent model for studying host-parasite relationships. Haemosporidian parasites of passerines are the most studied, while studies on owls are much less numerous. Therefore, the aim of this work is to investigate the infection of the tawny owl (Strix aluco) with haemosporidian parasites using molecular methods. 3 objectives were set to achieve this aim: to investigate the prevalence of haemosporidian parasites in tawny owls (Strix aluco); to determine the species composition of haemosporidian parasites detected in tawny owls (Strix aluco); and to identify possible mixed infections. This work describes the analysis of 76 blood samples from tawny owls by molecular diagnostic methods. Samples collected in Kėdainiai and Kaišiadorys districts in 2018 - 2023 were obtained from Kaunas Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum. DNA isolation with ammonium acetate and nested PCR revealed that 27 out of 76 individuals were infected with parasites. After sequencing, the parasites were identified using BLAST algorithms in the NCBI genebank and MalAvi database. The study showed that 35.53% of the individuals tested were infected with haemosporidian parasites. The genetic lines hCULKIB01 and hSTAL2 of the Haemoproteus syrnii parasite were found and identified in domestic owls. Nine samples showed mixed infections, which prevented identification of the parasites.

Grantor dc:publisher

Institutional Repository of Vilnius University

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Žičkytė, Gabija,

Statement dc:rights

• info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

Language dc:language

lit

Repository record dc:identifier

https://repository.vu.lt/VU:ELABAETD210642361&prefLang=en_US

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vu.lt:elaba:210642361