Molecular Identification and Clinicopathological Findings of Hepatozoon sp. Infection in a Cat: First Report from Turkey

Hepatozoon is a genus of protozoa belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa. Ticks are the vectors for the members of this genus. The protozoans infect a wide variety of mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians. The domestic and wild felids are also susceptible to Hepatozoon infection. A five-year-old female cat was presented to the Adnan Menderes University, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Animal Hospital, with a 1-month history of inappetence and weight loss. In a physical examination, weakness, depression, anorexia, lymphadenopathy, icteric mucous membranes, abdominal distension, and fever were detected. Laboratory analysis revealed anemia, neutrophilic leukocytosis, and increased serum total bilirubin and indirect bilirubin concentrations. Hepatozoonosis was diagnosed by the observation of Hepatozoon spp. gamonts within neutrophils in Giemsa-stained blood smears and confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). This is the first report about the molecular identification of hepatozoonosis in a cat from Turkey.