Med. Weter. 81
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| M. TAIBI, S. ZENIA, M. AISSI, S.A. BOUDOUMA, Z.N. REDJIMI, N. MIMOUNE |
| Histopathological and morphometric characterization of Sarcocystis spp. cysts in cattle muscles in central Algeria |
| Sarcocystis spp. are intracellular protozoans that belong to the Apicomplexa phylum and cause sarcocystosis in many animals, especially cattle. This study focuses on a detailed morphometric analysis of sarcocysts found in skeletal and cardiac muscles of cattle examined in three abattoirs in the central part of Northern Algeria. In order to assess the infestation of bovine carcasses with Sarcocystis cysts, 643 muscle samples (diaphragm, oesophagus, and heart) were taken from 269 cattle slaughtered in abattoirs of El Harrach, Eucalyptus (Algiers), and Draâ Ben Khedda (Tizi Ouzou). A total of 149 carcasses tested positive, representing a prevalence of 55.4%. The tissues were examined histologically to characterize the morphology of Sarcocystis species: S. cruzi, S. hirsuta and S. hominis. A total of 746 sarcocysts were identified and measured using an ocular micrometer. For each cyst, length, width and shape index (length/width ratio) were recorded. Morphometric analyses were performed at the level of the cyst. However, as individual cysts could not be linked to specific animals, the results were considered exploratory due to a possible pseudoreplication. Thick-walled cysts (S. hirsuta or S. hominis) ranged from 30 to 95 μm in length (mean ± SE: 64.37 ± 7.74 μm) and 17.5 to 70 μm in width (41.25 ± 6.61 μm), with a shape index between 1.22 and 2.86 (1.70 ± 0.19). Thin-walled cysts, typical of S. cruzi, measured 12.5 to 675 μm in length (93.70 ± 2.58 μm) and 7.5 to 137.5 μm in width (43.69 ± 0.69 μm), with a shape index ranging from 0.47 to 20.0 (2.21 ± 0.58 μm). No statistically significant differences (p > 0.05) between thickwalled and thin-walled cysts were observed for length, width or shape index. Differences in morphometric parameters were observed between the three organs examined (p < 0.001). Thin-walled cysts showed similar trends across organs (p < 0.001) for the three measurements, whereas no statistically significant differences (p > 0.05) were observed for thick-walled cysts. The observed morphological features were consistent with previous reports, supporting the usefulness of morphometric analysis for preliminary species differentiation. Definitive identification, however, requires molecular confirmation. These findings also highlight the potential impact of Sarcocystis infection on animal health and meat quality. |
| Keywords: histopathological method, morphometric analysis, Sarcocystis, bovine |