Theileria parva in the African Buffalo ( Syncerus caffer )

Résumé fourni par la source

African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) are susceptible to infection with Theileria parva, but infection does not result in disease. The parasite establishes low-level persistent infection in buffalo, and virtually all buffalo in areas infested with the tick vector are infected. Consequently, the buffalo represents an important reservoir of infection for transmission to cattle. This chapter discusses differences in the T. parva parasites found in cattle and buffalo and the diseases they cause following transmission to cattle. Available evidence indicates that the buffalo is the natural host of T. parva and that establishment of cattle as an alternative host occurred later following their introduction into Africa. The population of T. parva in buffalo exhibits much greater genotypic diversity than the parasites maintained in cattle, indicating that the latter represent a subset of the buffalo parasites that have adapted to being maintained in cattle. This is reflected by an inability of most buffalo parasites to differentiate to the tick-transmissible piroplasm stage following infection of cattle.