The present study investigates the prevalence of Cryptosporidium parvum in dromedary camel calves suffering from diarrhea in Al-Ahsa area of Eastern Saudi Arabia using antigen-capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Ag-ELISA). Ninety-two fecal samples collected and examined for the presence of C. parvum antigens. Sixteen positive samples (delta OD > 0.2) were, detected among these fecal samples representing 17.4% prevalence rate of C. parvum among camel calves. It is believed that, the present study represents the first report of Cryptosporidium parvum in diarrheic camel calves in Al-Ahsa area of Saudi Arabia. The prevalence rate detected in this study suggests that this parasite could be a possible cause of camel-calf diarrhea in the study area.
Key words: Cryptosporidium parvum, Camelus dromedarius, camel-calf, Al-Ahsa, diarrhea, ELISA
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