EXOone Hepatozoon canis

Description

Hepatozoon canis is a protozoan parasite transmitted by ingestion of infected ticks, mainly affecting dogs in tropical and subtropical regions. It infects leukocytes and tissues, establishing systemic infections.
Infection is often subclinical but may cause fever, lethargy, weight loss and anemia, particularly in young or immunocompromised animals. In some cases, chronic infection can impact animal condition and performance.
Conventional methods such as blood smear examination have limited sensitivity, especially in low parasitemia. Real-time PCR enables rapid, sensitive and specific detection of H. canis DNA directly from clinical samples, supporting analytical detection and monitoring.