DOI: 10.36347/sjavs.2019.v06i05.001

Pages: 140–147

Wild canids play a crucial role in the natural history of piroplasmoses; however, the contribution of Rüppell's fox (Vulpes rueppellii) is unrevealed. Hypothesize that Rüppell's fox residing Saudi Arabia is a competent reservoir for some Babesia species. Testing this hypothesis is a multistep project in which the first step is to demonstrate the presence of the parasite in suspected host. Therefore, the aim of this study was to molecularly detect and characterize Babesia spp. occurring in Rüppell's fox from KSA. Five archived fox DNA samples were tested using PCR targeting 18S rRNA gene of genus Babesia. Amplicons were purified, sequenced and analyzed. Two foxes showed evidence of babesia DNA and the phylogenetic analysis revealed that detected piroplasms belonged to Duncani group. Within this group the parasites clustered with the African lengau species from wild carnivores and Israeli MML species from red fox forming the newly assigned Afro-Asian clade. The pattern of identity, phylogeny and geographic distribution of Afro-Asian clade members exposed relevance to the East Africa West Asian bird flyway. This is the first record of babesia infection in Rüppell's fox of Arabia and worldwide. This molecular study not only demonstrated the presence of a novel potentially zoonotic piroplasm species but also further contributed to the ecology of genus Babesia.