Molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium in children in Oyo State, Nigeria: implications for infection sources

A study was conducted to detect and identify Cryptosporidium spp. in 43 children from Oyo State, Nigeria. Using nested polymerase chain reaction, 11.6% of the children were identified as positive for Cryptosporidium spp. Restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis and DNA sequencing of the PCR products showed the presence of three subtype families of Cryptosporidium hominis (two isolates of Ia and one isolate of Ib) and Cryptosporidium parvum (two isolates of IIc), all anthroponotic in nature. This study identified a high diversity of Cryptosporidium subtypes and clearly suggested that anthroponotic rather than zoonotic transmission played a more important role in the epidemiology of Cryptosporidium in the studied area.