EXOone Cytauxzoon spp.

Description

Cytauxzoon spp. are intracellular protozoan parasites transmitted by ticks that infect wild and domestic felids. Members of this genus invade macrophages and erythrocytes, causing systemic infections with variable clinical severity depending on the host species and the infecting parasite.
Cytauxzoonosis is characterized by fever, lethargy, anemia, jaundice and multi-organ involvement, and may result in severe or fatal disease in susceptible animals. Wild felids often act as reservoir hosts, contributing to the maintenance and spread of infection in endemic areas.
Conventional detection methods such as blood smear examination may have limited sensitivity, particularly during early infection or in animals with low parasitemia. Real-time PCR enables rapid, sensitive and specific detection of Cytauxzoon DNA directly from clinical samples, supporting analytical detection and surveillance.
This assay detects multiple Cytauxzoon species, including C. felis, C. europaeus, C. otrantorum, C. manul, C. brasiliensis, C. banethi and C. paradoxurus, providing broad coverage of the species currently reported in domestic and wild felids.