Review on status of babesiosis in humans and animals in Iran

Background: Babesiosis is a zoonotic disease caused by blood parasites of the genus Babesia. These parasites are transmitted by hard ticks and blood transfusion, causing fever, anemia, hemoglobinuria and jaundice in affected host. The objective of this manuscript was to review the current status of this parasite in human and animals in Iran. Methods and Materials: Data was collected from several English and Persian databases, including Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, Elm net, Web of Science, MAGIRAN, SID, etc. to identify the status of babesiosis. Results: Epidemiological studies on the identification of Babesia in Iran showed that Babesiosis was more common in sheep and goats, and the prevailing species was Babesia ovis. The prevalence of 0.0 to 60% infection to Babesia spp was reported from different animals in different regions of Iran (microscopic, serological and molecular examinations). The highest prevalence of babesiosis was reported in mountainous areas. The parasite was reported from other domestic and wild animals such as horse, cattle, dog, fox and rodents. Although the B. microti, B. bovis and B. divergens were reported from human cases from different countries, there were no peer reviewed reports of human babesiosis from Iran. Conclusions: It can be concluded that the studies conducted in different regions of Iran have shown a relatively high prevalence of babesiosis in livestock, especially in the Western and Northeastern provinces of Iran which could affect the livestock industry and be dangerous to human health.

Review on status of babesiosis in humans and animals in Iran Keywords:

Epidemiology , Babesiosis , status , human , animal