Sarcocystis fayeri sp. n. from the Horse

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Abstract
Hearts, diaphragms, esophagi and spinal cords from 266 horses were obtained at slaughter in Creston, Ohio [USA]. Tissues were examined microscopically for Sarcocystis in sections, digested in trypsin to obtain bradyzoites, and fed to 10 dogs and 10 cats. Intramuscular cysts were found in sections of 2 hearts from 57 horses and 4 esophagi from 107 horses. The cysts were up to 900 .mu.m long and up to 70 .mu.m wide. The cyst wall was 1-2 .mu.m thick and cross-striated. The enclosed bradyzoites were banana-shaped, 15-20 by 2-3 .mu.m, and contained several PAS-positive granules. Bradyzoites were found in trypsin digests of 7 of 57 (13%) equine tissues (heart, diaphragm, esophagus but not spinal cord) in one experiment and 10 of 47 (21%) esophagi, 8 of 47 (17%) diaphragms but none of 47 hearts and spinal cords in another experiment. All of 10 dogs shed sporulated sporocysts or oocysts in feces 12-15 days (12 in one, 13 in eight, and 15 days in one) after digesting tissues from 169 horses. The sporocysts were 11-13 (12.0 .+-. 0.5) by 7-8.5 (7.9 .+-. 0.5) .mu.m. In histologic sections of canine small intestine the sporocysts were located in the lamina propria near the tips of the villi. The 10 cats fed tissues from 266 horses did not shed Sarcocystis. S. fayeri sp. nov. is proposed for this organism. S. fayeri sporocysts (12 by 8 .mu.m) are shorter than those of S. bertrami (15 by 10 .mu.m), the other species of Sarcocystis from the horse. The prepatent period is 12-15 days for S. fayeri and 8 days for S. bertrami (synonym S. equicanis Rommel and Geisel 1975).

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