Microsporidial intestinal infection in pigs: first identification of Encephalitozoon cuniculi strain III and novel genotypes of Enterocytozoon bieneusi

Microsporidia (belonging to the phylum Microspora with over 100 genera andalmost 1000 species) are obligate intracellular parasites that infect mostinvertebrates and all classes of vertebrates. Microsporidiosis is an emergingdisease, which may cause severe symptoms in humans and animals, particularlyin immunocompromised populations. Hitherto, Enterocytozoon bieneusi and Encephalitozoon spp . ( E. cuniculi, E. intestinalis, E. hellem ) are the mostfrequently detected microsporidia species in humans and animals.At present, E. bieneusi is the most frequently microsporidia species detected inswine and also the main cause of human microsporidiosis. The genetic similarityof the genotypes found in humans and swine let suppose that some E. bieneusi genotypes are zoonotic pathogens. In the present study thirty four samples ofintestinal contents from thirty four pigs of six farms from North-Western Germanywere investigated for microsporidia by light microscopy, PCR and sequencing.