EXOone Besnoitia besnoiti

Description

Besnoitia besnoiti are cyst-forming apicomplexan parasites which are the causative agent of bovine besnoitiosis, a severe but often non-fatal disease with a significant economic impact in many countries. The disease in cattle is systemic, manifested by swelling of the lymph nodes, subcutaneous edema, diarrhea, abortion and infertility. Detection of acutely infected cattle is difficult since clinical signs are often not characteristic. Diagnosis usually consists in identification of cysts macroscopically or microscopically by histological techniques. There are also IFA or ELISA tests. However, serological methods have the problem that antibodies appear only in a later stage of the infection. Real Time PCRs assays circumvent this issue and allow an specific an early detection procedure.