Microscopical and phylogenetic identification of Giardia lamblia from fecal samples of chickens in Baghdad governorate, Iraq

Giardia lamblia is a zoonotic protozoan that causes diarrhea in chickens. This feature makes this microorganism a potential research material. The presented study was conducted to identify Giardia lamblias presence in fecal samples of chickens in Baghdad Province, Iraq. The investigation involved 60 fecal samples collected over different months of the year. The samples were examined using microscopic and PCR-based methods and partial gene sequencing that targeted the glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) gene. The microscopic observations revealed the presence of the cysts at their highest rate of 4/5 (80%) during January. The PCR demonstrated that 13/60 (21.66%) of the chickens were infected. The phylogenetic tree reported that the current strains were closely related to global isolates from Poland and Australia. The results of the present study determined a significant distribution of Giardia lamblia in the fecal content of chickens, which reflects human infection.