A total of 181 faecal samples were collected from wild cervids in two regions of Poland. Giardia cysts were detected in one faecal specimen from red deer and in two samples from roe deer. Fragments of the β-giardin (bg) triose phosphate isomerase (tpi) and glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh) genes were successfully amplified from the Giardia isolate obtained from red deer, whereas only amplicons of bg and gdh were obtained from Giardia isolates derived from two roe deer. The result of genotyping and phylogenetic analysis showed that the G. duodenalis isolate from red deer belonged to sub-assemblage AIII, which has never been identified in humans, whereas isolates from roe deer clustered within zoonotic sub-assemblage AI. Further studies are necessary to explain which Giardia assemblages and/or sub-assemblages occur in wild cervids in various regions of the world. Moreover, the impact of Giardia infection on the health of wild cervids should also be elucidated.
Toxoplasma gondii Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908 is an apicomplexan parasite with a worldwide distribution. It is of great medical and veterinary importance because it may cause abortion or congenital disease in its intermediate hosts, including man. The European bison, the largest herbivorous animal in Europe, is a species that has been saved from extinction. Twenty-four of 95 examined sera of the European bison (Bison bonasus bonasus) from the Białowieża Forest, Poland collected from 2008 to 2011 were found to be positive for the presence of T. gondii-specific IgG antibodies using a direct agglutination test, with the antibody titre in positive animals ranging from 40 to 18000. Statistically significant differences were observed only between years of sample collection. This is the first report on T. gondii in lowland European bison living in the natural environment.