Abstract
•A total of 384 fecal and blood samples were randomly collected and diagnosed using two-step nested PCR after initial screening.•Blood samples were processed for measurement of hematological and biochemical parameters.•Diseased goats showed significant increase (P < 0.05) in lymphocyte, eosinophils and packed cell volume.•Biochemical analysis showed significant decrease (P < 0.05) in total proteins, albumin, ALP, sodium and zinc, while significant increase (P < 0.05) was recorded in copper, urea and creatinine.
Cryptosporidiosis is the second major cause of diarrheal illness in humans and animals. Despite being a major cause of digestive anomalies in goats of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Pakistan), there is a serious dearth of data regarding the infection induced alterations in physiological biomarkers. The present study was conducted to record changes in vital body parameters caused by the cryptosporidiosis. A total of 384 fecal and blood samples were randomly collected from adult goats showing clinical signs of the disease. Fecal samples were examined using the modified Ziehl Neelsen acid fast staining, and were confirmed for the infection using two-step nested PCR assay. A total of 66 animals were included in the diseased group, while 57 were included in healthy animals group. Blood samples were processed for measurement of hematological and biochemical parameters using automatic analyzer. Diseased goats showed significant increase in lymphocytes, eosinophils and packed cell volume (P < 0.05). Biochemical analysis showed significant decrease in total proteins, albumin, ALP, sodium and zinc (P < 0.05), while significant increase (P < 0.05) was recorded in copper, urea and creatinine in diseased goats.