New operational taxonomic units of Enterocytozoon in three marsupial species

Abstract

Background: Enterocytozoon bieneusi is a microsporidian, commonly found in animals, including humans, in various countries. However, there is scant information about this microorganism in Australasia. In the present study, we conducted the first molecular epidemiological investigation of E. bieneusi in three species of marsupials (Macropus giganteus, Vombatus ursinus and Wallabia bicolor) living in the catchment regions which supply the city of Melbourne with drinking water. Methods: Genomic DNAs were extracted from 1365 individual faecal deposits from these marsupials, including common wombat (n = 315), eastern grey kangaroo (n = 647) and swamp wallaby (n = 403) from 11 catchment areas, and..