Cryptosporidium parvum is one of the major causes of neonatal calf diarrhoea resulting in reduced farm productivity and compromised animal welfare worldwide. Livestock act as a major reservoir of this parasite, which can be transmitted to humans directly and/or indirectly, posing a public health risk. Research reports on the prevalence of Cryptosporidium in ruminants from east Mediterranean countries, including Cyprus, are limited. This study is the first to explore the occurrence of Cryptosporidium spp. in cattle up to 24 months old on the island of Cyprus. A total of 242 faecal samples were collected from 10 dairy cattle farms in Cyprus, all of which were screened for Cryptosporidium spp. using nested-PCR amplification targeting the small subunit of the ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA) gene. The 60 kDa glycoprotein (gp60) gene was also sequenced for the samples identified as Cryptosporidium parvum-positive to determine the subtypes present. The occurrence of Cryptosporidium was 43.8% (106/242) with at least one positive isolate in each farm sampled. Cryptosporidium bovis, Cryptosporidium ryanae and C. parvum were the only species identified, while the prevalence per farm ranged from 20-64%. Amongst these, the latter was the predominant species, representing 51.8% of all positive samples, followed by C. bovis (21.7%) and C. ryanae (31.1%). Five C. parvum subtypes were identified, four of which are zoonotic-IIaA14G1R1, IIaA15G1R1, IIaA15G2R1 and IIaA18G2R1. IIaA14G1R1 was the most abundant, representing 48.2% of all C. parvum positive samples, and was also the most widespread. This is the first report of zoonotic subtypes of C. parvum circulating in Cyprus. These results highlight the need for further research into the parasite focusing on its diversity, prevalence, host range and transmission dynamics on the island.
Keywords: 18S rRNA; Cryptosporidium; Cryptosporidium parvum detection; Cyprus; calves; gp60; subtyping; zoonosis.