Abstract:
This study was carried out to investigate molecular epidemiology of
heartwater in the Sudan by assessing prevalence of infection in
domestic ruminants and the vector tick of the genus Amblyomma
using the standard PCR technique based on the pCS20 gene. Four
hundred and sixty samples were collected from different regions in
the Sudan. They included 190 Amblyomma lepidum and 100
Amblyomma variegatum ticks, and 50, 60 and 50 blood samples from
cattle, sheep and goats respectively. The samples were tested with
pCS20 PCR. The infection rate of E. ruminantium was 15.3%
(29/190) and 14% (14/100) in A. lepidum and A. variegatum,
respectively. The prevalence of E. ruminantium in the blood samples
was 6.7% (4/60), 4% (2/50) and 8.3% (5/60) from cattle, sheep and
goats, respectively. It defined the spatial distribution and prevalence
of E. ruminantium in the vector population and domestic ruminants
and provided an accurate assessment of the potential risk of
heartwater to livestock in some endemic regions in the Sudan. This
study has proved the way for a national program for the investigation
of the epidemiology of heartwater in the Sudan.
2013 Sudan University of Science and Technology. All rights reserved
