Sequence and phylogenetic analysis of the thrombospondin-related adhesive protein (TRAP) gene of Babesia gibsoni isolates from dogs in Taiwan.
The genetic diversity of Babesia gibsoni strains worldwide is currently poorly defined. The aim of the present study was to characterize B. gibsoni strains in naturally infected dogs in Taiwan using a combination of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequence analysis of both 18S rDNA and the gene encoding thrombospondin-related adhesive protein (TRAP). Genomic DNA was extracted from 29 parasitemic dogs, and the target genes were separately amplified, sequenced and aligned with corresponding sequences available in GenBank. All 18S rDNA sequences (1,262 bp) amplified from the Taiwanese isolates were identical to each other and had very high similarity (99.9-100%) with previously reported B. gibsoni sequences. These results provide the first molecular evidence showing infection of dogs with B. gibsoni from Taiwan. On the other hand, a phylogenetic analysis based on the deduced amino acid sequence of the TRAP gene demonstrated that the Taiwanese isolates were closely related to strains previously identified from Okinawa Island, Japan, but genetically distinct from strains found on Honshu in Japan and Jeju Island in South Korea. The divergence of TRAP among the geographically dispersed strains examined in this study and others supports the conclusion that this gene is useful for molecular genotyping of B. gibsoni strains.
Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan.
Chung-Chan
CC
Lee
Yu-Chen
YC
Hsieh
Chia-Chia
CC
Huang
Chau-Loong
CL
Tsang
Yang-Tsung
YT
Chung
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001403:Babesia / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001404:Babesiosis / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics / Q000662:veterinary*; D001483:Base Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D004285:Dogs; D005784:Gene Amplification; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013624:Taiwan
D017931:DNA Primers; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; C069428:thrombospondin-related adhesive protein, protozoan