The occurrence of Anaplasma phagocyto- philum in wild bison from the Bialowieza Primeval Forest in Eastern Poland

The aim of the present study was to investigate the occurrence of Anaplasma spp. in a group of 120 wild bison (Bison bonasus) from the Bialowieza Primeval Forest in eastern Poland and to determine which species of Anaplasma could infect these animals based on a PCR of a part of the 16S rRNA gene followed by sequencing. The PCR technique showed the presence of 16S rRNA Anaplasma spp. genetic material in the blood of 22 from a total of 120 animals. DNA amplification by means of the primers EHR 521 and EHR 747 gave a product size of 252-bp. The sequences of the PCR products obtained showed 100% homology with each other and 100% homology with the Anaplasma phagocytophilum GU 183908 sequence from our earlier study, isolated from a horse with a clinical case of anaplasmosis. The similarity of the sequences with the sequences of the 16S rRNA gene isolated from various Anaplasma species deposited in the GeneBank, ranged between 95.8% and 98.8%. Based on the results of molecular analysis, bacterial DNA detected in the blood of 22 wild bison was identified as Anaplasma phagocytophilum.

Identification of the piroplasms isolated from horses with clinical piroplasmosis in Poland

The study was aimed at determining the cause of the diseases in three horses exhibiting symptoms of fever, ataxia, mucus membrane paleness, haematuria and thrombocytopenia. The PCR technique revealed the presence in the blood of 18S RNA Babesia/Theileria spp. genetic material. DNA amplification using primers RLB F2 and RLB R2 produced 430 bp size products. The sequences of these PCR products demonstrated a 95.6-97.5% similarity with the sequence of the fragment of 18S RNA Babesia equi, gene number DQ287951 in the GenBank. The treatment utilizing the subcutaneous application of the imidocarb resulted in gradual recovery of the diseased animals.