Şanlıurfa Yöresinde Koyun ve Keçilerde Anaplasma phagocytophilum’un Moleküler Yöntemlerle Araştırılması

This study was performed to determine the presence and prevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in sheep and goats in the Şanliurfa region. Whole blood samples were taken from a total of 208 animals (134 sheep and 74 goats) in the Şanliurfa region. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using primers specific to the A. phagocytophilum 16S SSU rRNA gene of the bacterium was applied to the blood samples. The amplified DNA fragments in PCR positive samples were sequenced in order to confirm their identity. PCR amplification indicated the presence of A. phagocytophilum in 9 animals (4.33 %). A. phagocytophilum was present in 5.97 % (8/134) of sheep and 1.35 % (1/74) of goats. The nucleotide sequence of a sample selected to represent the PCR positive samples was determined. The resulting DNA sequence was compared to other DNA sequences available in the GenBank using BLAST analysis and placed into GenBank under accession number as KJ183079. The presence of A. phagocytophilum in the sheep and goats in the Şanliurfa region was demonstrated for the first time using PCR and sequence analyses and epidemiologic data regarding the pathogen were also obtained.