Molecular detection and genetic diversity of Babesia canis canis in pet dogs in Henan Province, China

Canine babesiosis is an important tick-borne disease caused by Babesia spp. A total of 130 blood samples were randomly collected from pet dogs in Zhengzhou city, Henan Province, China, and screened for the presence of piroplasms with nested PCR and gene sequencing targeting the 18S rRNA gene. On the basis of blast analysis of the 18S rRNA gene sequences, our results revealed that seven dogs (5.4%) were infected with Babesia canis canis. The sequences were compared with those in GenBank, and alignments showed that all B. canis canis isolates belonged to genotype B. This is the first report of B. canis canis infection in dogs in China.