Update on Cryptosporidium and Giardia infections in cattle

Abstract

Cattle are frequently parasitized with Giardia duodenalis, Cryptosporidium parvum and Cryptosporidium andersoni. These parasites cause diarrhoea and impair gain of body weight. Giardia and Cryptosporidium from cattle are potential zoonotic pathogens, and contact with animals, manure or contaminated water is believed to lead to infections in humans. Molecular epidemiology has suggested that cattle are not as significant a reservoir for human infections as was once believed. Most G. duodenalis from cattle (Assemblage E) are different from those in humans (Assemblages A and B), and C. andersoni does not infect humans. However, molecular tools have shown that humans can be infected with zoonotic C. parvum, as well as anthroponotic Cryptosporidium hominis.