Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T16:28:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo6392_1.pdf: 4313443 bytes, checksum: c9863c6d46edb79cdb34b7f265eec379 (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Doenças parasitárias, incluindo a toxoplasmose, afetam milhões de pessoas, sendo assim algumas das mais prevalentes doenças em humanos. A toxoplasmose é causada por um parasito intracelular, Toxoplasma gondii, e está associada com severas patologias, como pneumonia e miocardite. Em recentes trabalhos, nosso grupo de pesquisa reportou a síntese e atividade anti-T. gondii de tiossemicarbazonas e 4-tiazolidinonas substituídas na porção arilhidrazona com o grupo nitro nas posição orto, meta e para. Estes resultados foram pioneiros, devido a inexistência na literatura da ação destas duas classes de compostos no parasito intracelular. Na busca de novas drogas ativas contra o T. gondii, bem como apresentando potencial atividade antimicrobiana, desenvolvemos a síntese de uma série de benzaldeído 4-fenil-3-tiossemicarbazonas e de três séries de seus derivados 2[(fenilmetileno)hidrazono]-3-fenil-4-tiazolidinona-5-substituídos, ambas apresentando substituintes eletroretiradores e eletroatratores na função arilhidrazona. Já as 4-tiazolidinonas ainda se diferenciaram quanto a presença ou ausência de substituintes na posição 5 do anel, sendo eles hidrogênio, acetil e pnitrobenzilideno. Todos os compostos foram submetidos a avaliação in vitro de suas atividades anti-T. gondii. Apenas os derivados tiazolidinônicos foram submetidos à atividade antimicrobiana. As tiossemicarbazonas foram sintetizadas a partir de reações de condensação entre 4-feniltiossemicarbazida e benzaldeídos substituídos. Já as 4-tiazolidinonas foram obtidas a partir das tiossemicarbazonas, através de reações com o anidrido maléico (aceptor de Michael), cloroacetato de etila e 2-Ciano-3[(4-nitro)-fenil]-acetato de etila. Após purificação, os compostos finais apresentaram rendimentos entre 36-100%. Todos foram caracterizados por métodos espectroscópicos convencionais (RMN 1H, RMN 13C e IV), os mesmos mostrando-se consistentes com as respectivas estruturas. Alguns derivados tiazolidinônicos contendo o grupo acetil na posição 5 do anel 4-tiazolidinona demonstraram consideráveis atividades antibióticas frente aos microrganismos M. luteus, M. tuberculosis e Candida sp. (IMUR 4249). Em geral, todas as tiossemicarbazonas e 4-tiazolidinonas sintetizadas apresentaram excelentes atividades in vitro frente ao T. gondii intracelular, reduzindo significantemente a percentagem de células infectadas e o número médio de parasitos intracelulares a partir das concentrações de 1 e 2 mM. Vários compostos apresentaram melhores resultados quando comparados com hidroxiuréia e sulfadiazina. A toxicidade para a maioria dos compostos foi mais efetiva contra os parasitos, com valores de CI50 entre 0,05 e 1mM

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T16:31:38Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo6183_1.pdf: 1683765 bytes, checksum: b5847d9d54b73793b7e809056f871fd5 (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Doenças parasitárias, como a toxoplasmose, afetam milhões de pessoas no mundo inteiro e são amplamente pesquisadas. Este fato deve-se, em parte, à elevada disseminação dessas doenças em pacientes imunocomprometidos, principalmente naqueles que apresentam a síndrome da imunodeficiência adquirida (AIDS). A toxoplasmose é uma infecção causada por Toxoplasma gondii, parasita com biologia bastante complexa e de caráter cosmopolita, estando largamente distribuído nas diversas áreas geográficas do globo terrestre. Em trabalho publicado recentemente por nosso grupo de pesquisa, foi observado que tiossemicarbazonas e aril-hidrazono-4-tiazolidinonas, substituídas na porção aril com grupo nitro, possuem notória atividade anti-T. gondii. Nos últimos anos, várias publicações têm abordado compostos contendo o núcleo imidazol como potenciais agentes antiprotozoários. Principalmente para análogos do megazol (2-amino-5-(1-metil-5-nitro-2- imidazolil)-1,3,4-tiadiazol) atuando como agentes antichagásicos. Com o objetivo de produzir novas moléculas ativas contra T. gondii desenvolvemos a síntese e avaliação in vitro para aciltiossemicarbazidas (e seus derivados: 4- tiazolidinonas e 1,3,4-tiadiazóis) obtidas a partir do éster etil(5-metil-1-Himidazol- 4-carboxilato). Aciltiossemicarbazidas foram sintetizadas através da reação de adição entre 5-metil-1H-imidazol-4-carboidrazida e isotiocianatos substituídos. A partir destas, foram obtidas duas novas séries: 4-tiazolidinonas, através de uma reação tia-Michael envolvendo anidrido maléico como aceptor de Michael; e 1,3,4-tiadiazóis por uma ciclodesidratação com ácido sulfúrico. Os produtos finais foram purificados por recristalizações (tiossemicarbazidas) e cromatografia em coluna (4-tiazolidinonas) em solventes apropriados, obtendose rendimentos entre 10% e 94%, e caracterizados estruturalmente por métodos espectroscópicos convencionais (RMN 1H, RMN 13C, IV) e espectrometria de massas de alta resolução (MS-HR). A formação de aciltiossemicarbazidas foi confirmada principalmente em RMN 13C, onde sinais em 181,1-181,0 ppm e 163,1-162,5 ppm evidenciaram os grupos C=S e C=O, respectivamente. Para 4-tiazolidinonas, bandas de absorção encontradas entre 1397-1378 cm-1, referentes à deformação angular do grupo NCS, confirmaram o fechamento do anel. Os derivados 1,3,4-tiadiazóis foram caracterizados observando-se a ausência de sinais entre 181,1-181,0 ppm e 163,1-162,5 ppm em espectros de RMN 13C referentes aos grupos C=S e C=O. A existência de troca química em aciltiossemicarbazidas, envolvendo átomos de H lábeis, foi confirmada através da análise espectroscópica de troca química (EXSY). Os resultados de atividade anti-T. gondii indicaram as aciltiossemicarbazidas e os derivados contendo o núcleo 1,3,4-tiadiazol como os compostos de maior ação inibitória frente à células vero infectadas e ao parasita intracelular, evidenciado uma futura aplicação desses derivados como agentes anti-T. gondii. Por fim, foram realizados testes antimicrobianos, os quais revelaram fracas atividades dos compostos sintetizados frente a fungos e bactérias. A descrição de atividades antimicrobianas na literatura, para compostos contendo os heterociclos imidazol, 1,3,4-tiadiazol e 4-tiazolidinona, justificou a realização dos testes para as moléculas obtidas

Submitted by Mario BC (mario@bc.ufrpe.br) on 2018-06-20T13:29:58Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Paulo Cesar Goncalves de Azevedo Filho.pdf: 1942735 bytes, checksum: 02c3cdaa871437e7dc1b37053ee3a98c (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-06-20T13:29:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Paulo Cesar Goncalves de Azevedo Filho.pdf: 1942735 bytes, checksum: 02c3cdaa871437e7dc1b37053ee3a98c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-10-26 / Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum are obligate intracellular parasites responsible for reproductive disorders in sheep. The aim of this study was to evaluate the kinetics of antibodies in ewes naturally infected by Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum. Ewes in reproductive age composed the experimental groups. All animals were submitted to pregnancy diagnosis and serological monitoring to determine prevalence and incidence rates. Blood samples of the ewes (postpartum) and their lambs (pre-colostral) were collected to evaluate the vertical transmission rate. Serological monitoring of the ewes was performed using the ELISA, and research of IgG antibodies anti- T. gondii and N. caninum in lambs was performed by IFAT. Aborted fetuses tissue samples were collected for PCR. The initial prevalence of toxoplasmosis was 25.0 % (15/60) and the final 46.7% (28/60), with an incidence of 28.9% (13/45); N. caninum initial prevalence was 26.0% (13/50) and the final 72.0% (36/50), and the incidence rate of 62.2 % (23/37). The abortion rate was 37.5% (3/8) for T. gondii and no abortions cases by N. caninum. The vertical transmission rate for T. gondii was 38.9% and 15.4% for N. caninum. The results of this study indicate immune response alterations in ewes naturally infected by T. gondii, mainly in those that aborted. Moreover, it was observed the importance of the horizontal transmission on the infection incidence by coccidia, as weel as the importance of the congenital infection to the maintenance of the parasites in the flock analyzed. / Toxoplasma gondii e Neospora caninum são parasitos intracelulares obrigatórios responsáveis por distúrbios reprodutivos em ovinos. Objetivou-se neste estudo avaliar a cinética de anticorpos em ovelhas naturalmente infectadas por Toxoplasma gondii e Neospora caninum. Ovelhas em idade reprodutiva compuseram os grupos experimentais. Todos os animais passaram por diagnóstico de gestação e monitoramento sorológico para determinar a taxa de prevalência e incidência. Amostras de sangue das ovelhas e seus conceptos foram coletadas para avaliar a taxa de transmissão vertical. Para o monitoramento sorológico das ovelhas foi utilizada a técnica de ELISA e para a pesquisa de anticorpos IgG anti- T. gondii e N. caninum nos neonatos foi utilizada a RIFI. Dos fetos abortados foram coletadas amostras de tecidos para PCR. A prevalência inicial da toxoplasmose no rebanho foi de 25,0% (15/60) e a final de 46,7% (28/60) com incidência de 28,9% (13/45); para N. caninum a prevalência inicial foi de 26,0% (13/50) e a final de 72,0% (36/50) e taxa de incidência de 62,2% (23/37). A taxa de aborto foi de 37,5% (3/8) nas ovelhas infectadas por T. gondii e ausência de abortos por N. caninum. A taxa de transmissão vertical para T. gondii foi de 38,9% e de 15,4% para N. caninum. Os resultados deste estudo indicam alterações na resposta imune de ovelhas naturalmente infectadas por T. gondii, principalmente nas ovelhas que abortaram. Além disto, constatou-se a importância da transmissão horizontal na incidência da infecção pelos coccídios e a importância da infecção congênita para a manutenção dos parasitos no rebanho analisado.

Orientador: Ana Maria Aparecida Guaraldo / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-21T00:42:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rocha_RosangelaJunqueira_D.pdf: 4641170 bytes, checksum: aedf4a1570b3ee1a0bf27ff37fbccd29 (MD5) Previous issue date: 1995 / Resumo: Para a detecção de antígenos de T. gondii na urina e plasma de camundongos infectados com o parasito foi utilizada técnica de ELISA de captura. Na técnica, IgG humana anti,T. gondii, obtida por cromatografia de afinidade, foi utilizada para o revestimento da placa de ELISA com o intuito de capturar antígenos específicos. Nas reações positivas, os antígenos de T. gondii foram reconhecidos por IgG de coelho anti, T. gondii obtida por cromatografia de afinidade. Utilizou,se o conjugado IgG de cabra anti,lgG de coelho marcado com peroxidase e como substrato a ortofenilenodiamina. Em cada placa de reação foram incluídos padrões contendo concentrações conhecidas de proteínas de taquizoitos (AgS T. gondii). A concentração de proteínas presentes nas amostras testadas foram expressas em J.1g1 mI. A técnica eviqenciou alta reprodutibilidade, com limite inferior de sensibilidade de 0,05 Ilg/mI. Foi observada antigenúria em camundongos inoculados com 1000, 25000, 50000 e 100000 taquizoitos da linhagem N de alta virulência de Toxoplasma gondii ,durante a fase aguda da infecção. Camundongos inoculados com 1, 6 ou 12 cistos da linhagem P de moderada virulência de T. gondii apresentaram antigenúria e antigenemia na fase aguda e crônica da infecção. Os primeiros cistos foram detectados no cérebro dos camundongos infectados com a linhagem P, 11 dias após a infecção. O número de cistos e o volume médio aumenta com o tempo de infecção, independentemente do número de cistos inoculados. Na fase crônica da infecção dos animais observou,se o ocorrência simultânea de cistos grandes e pequenos, indicando neoformação de cistos. A neoformação de cistos e antigenúria na fase crônica da infecção, indicam a possibilidade de reagudização periódica da infecção pelo T. gondii / Doutorado / Parasitologia / Doutor em Ciências Biológicas

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous, protozoan parasite contributing significantly to global human and animal health. In the host, this obligate intracellular parasite converts into a latent tissue cyst form known as the bradyzoite, which is impervious to the immune response. The tissue cysts facilitate wide-spread transmission through the food chain and give rise to chronic toxoplasmosis in immune compromised patients. In addition, they may reactivate into replicating tachyzoites which cause tissue damage and disseminated disease. Current available drugs do not appear to have appreciable activity against latent bradyzoites. Therefore, a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms that drive interconversion between tachyzoite and bradyzoite forms is required to manage transmission and pathogenesis of Toxoplasma. Conversion to the bradyzoite is accompanied by an altered transcriptome, but the molecular players directing this process are largely uncharacterized. Studies of stage-specific promoters revealed that conventional cis-acting mechanisms operate to regulate developmental gene expression during tissue cyst formation. The major class of transcription factor likely to work through these cis-regulatory elements appears to be related to the Apetala-2 (AP2) family in plants. The Toxoplasma genome contains nearly 70 proteins harboring at least one predicted AP2 domain, but to date only three of these T. gondii AP2 proteins have been linked to bradyzoite development. We show that the putative T. gondii transcription factor, AP2IX-4, is localized to the parasite nucleus and exclusively expressed in tachyzoites and bradyzoites undergoing division. Knockout of AP2IX-4 had negligible effect on tachyzoite replication, but resulted in a reduced frequency of bradyzoite cysts in response to alkaline stress induction – a defect that is reversible by complementation. Microarray analyses revealed an enhanced activation of bradyzoite-associated genes in the AP2IX-4 knockout during alkaline conditions. In mice, the loss of AP2IX-4 resulted in a modest virulence defect and reduced brain cyst burden. Complementation of the AP2IX-4 knockout restored cyst counts to wild-type levels. These findings illustrate the complex role of AP2IX-4 in bradyzoite development and that certain transcriptional mechanisms responsible for tissue cyst development operate across parasite division.

No description available.

No description available.

Evidence suggests that the neurotropic parasite Toxoplasma gondii may play a role in the development of cognitive impairments. My hypothesis was that congenital exposure to T. gondii would lead to detectable age and sex related differences in behavior and neurotransmitter levels in mice. The neurotransmitter dopamine and commonly used anti-schizophrenic agents were evaluated against T. gondii in human fibroblast cells. Dopamine caused a significant increase in tachyzoite numbers at 250 nM but not 100 nM and the drugs valproic acid, fluphenazine, thioridazine and trifluoperazine inhibited T. gondii development. The effects T. gondii infection had on behavior were examined using a congenital mouse model. Previous work demonstrated maternal immune stimulation (MIS) with interferon gamma (INF-g) resulted in decreased fetal mortality from congenital T. gondii infections; therefore I examined the effects of INF- g treatment of mothers to determine if protection from the behavioral effects of T. gondii occurred in their offspring. No differences in concentrations of neurotransmitters in the brains of congenitally infected mice were observed. I found that mice infected with T. gondii developed adult onset behavior impairments with decreased rate of learning, increased activity and decreased memory, indicating cognitive impairment for male mice and not female mice. My findings support the evidence T. gondii is a factor in the development of cognitive impairments. My results for T. gondii exposed male mice are consistent with the convention that males have more cognitive impairments in the prodromal stage of schizophrenia. MIS with IFN-g had a minimal effect on behavior post sexual maturity but had a greater effect on pre sexual maturity female mice which exhibited difficulties with spatial memory, coordination and the ability to process stimuli. The results indicate the behavior alterations from IFN- g are transient. When MIS is given prior to congenital infection with T. gondii, we detected no behavior deficits in any group of mice, including male mice post sexual maturity. Based on the results of my study, I must reject the hypothesis that neurotransmitter levels are influenced by congenital toxoplasmosis and accept the hypothesis that congenital T. gondii infection caused cognitive impairments in male mice post sexual maturity. / Ph. D.

The central nervous system (CNS) is protected by a vascular blood-brain barrier that prevents many types of pathogens from entering the brain. Still, some pathogens have evolved mechanisms to traverse this barrier and establish a long-term infection. The apicomplexan parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, is one such pathogen with the ability to infect the CNS in virtually all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Across the globe, an estimated 30% of the human population is infected with Toxoplasma, an infection for which mounting evidence suggests increases the risk for developing neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders, like seizures and schizophrenia. In my dissertation, I investigate the telencephalic neural circuit changes induced by long-term Toxoplasma infection in the mouse brain and the neuroimmune signaling role of the complement system in mediating microglial remodeling of neural circuits following parasitic infection. While there has been keen interest in investigating neural circuit changes in the amygdala – a region of the brain involved in fear response and which Toxoplasma infection alters in many species of infected hosts – the hippocampus and cortex have been less explored. These are brain regions for which Toxoplasma also has tropism, and moreover, are rich with fast-spiking parvalbumin perisomatic synapses, a type of GABAergic synapse whose dysfunction has been implicated in epilepsy and schizophrenia. By employing a range of visualization techniques to assess cell-to-cell connectivity and neuron-glia interactions (including immunohistochemistry, ultrastructural microscopy, and microglia-specific reporter mouse lines), I discovered that longterm Toxoplasma infection causes microglia to target and ensheath neuronal somata in these regions and subsequently phagocytose their perisomatic inhibitory synapses. These findings provide a novel model by which Toxoplasma infection within the brain can lead to seizure susceptibility and a wider range of behavioral and cognitive changes unrelated to fear response. In the Toxoplasma infected brain, microglia, along with monocytes recruited to the brain from the periphery, coordinate a neuroinflammatory response against pathogenic invasion. This is characterized by a widespread activation of these cells and their increased interaction with neurons and their synaptic inputs. Yet, whether T. gondii infection triggers microglia and monocytes (i.e. phagocytes) to target, ensheath, and remove perisomatic inhibitory synapses on neuronal somata indiscriminately, or whether specificity exists in this type of circuit remodeling, remained unclear. Through a comprehensive assessment of phagocyte interactions with cortical neuron subtypes, I demonstrate that phagocytes selectively target and ensheath excitatory pyramidal cells in long-term infection. Moreover, coupling of in situ hybridization with transgenic reporter lines and immunolabeling revealed that in addition to phagocytes, excitatory neurons also express complement component C3 following infection (while inhibitory interneurons do not). Lastly, by employing targeted deletion of complement components, C1q and C3, I show that complement is required for phagocyte ensheathment of excitatory cells and the subsequent removal of perisomatic inhibitory synapses on these cells (albeit not through the classical pathway). Together, these studies highlight a novel role for complement in mediating synapse-type and cell-type specific circuit remodeling in the Toxoplasma infected brain. / Doctor of Philosophy / Parasites are microorganisms that rely on other living organisms (called hosts) for their survival. Although some parasites only live on their hosts, others have developed ways to establish infections and obtain the nutrients that keep them alive from host cells. My Ph.D. research has focused on studying one of these parasites, Toxoplasma gondii (commonly referred to as Toxo), that has evolved the unique ability to establish brain infections in almost all animals around the world, from rodents to humans. Recent discoveries show that brain infection with this parasite can cause seizures, an imbalance in the way that specialized cells of the brain (called neurons) communicate with each other, causing harmful hyperactivity within the brain. Toxo infection can also cause behavioral and cognitive changes in infected animals, making them more susceptible to predation. In humans, infection with Toxo increases their risk for developing different types of mental illness, such as schizophrenia. The focus of my Ph.D. research has been in trying to understand, at the cellular and molecular level, how infection with this parasite can lead to seizures and behavioral changes, by using mice as a model. Mice have a similar brain structure to humans, and over the years, scientists have developed many tools that allow us to visualize and study the connections between neurons (called synapses). I'm interested in understanding how changes in these connections affect how neurons communicate with each other, and ultimately, how we behave and think. I have been studying a type of connection that, if lost or damaged, can lead to seizures and some types of mental illness. These connections are called 'perisomatic inhibitory synapses', and they form on many distinct types of neurons, but specifically on the cell bodies of these neurons. They act as a traffic light, informing neurons when and for how long to 'slow down' their activity. I discovered that after the parasite enters the brain, it causes another type of cell in the brain, called microglia, to extensively interact with neurons in the cortex and hippocampus (areas of your brain important for thinking, executing behavior, and learning). Microglia are immune cells of the brain that inspect the brain for anything damaged or that doesn't belong (like parasites) and removes them from the brain. By performing experiments where I delete individual immune molecules from mice, I found that one immune molecule, called 'complement component C3' acts as cue for microglia to find these cells, wrap around them, and permanently remove these important connections. Surprisingly, however, microglia don't remove these connections from all neurons, indiscriminately, they do so only on one specific cell type called 'excitatory pyramidal neurons,' and as the name implies, they're the ones who drive activity in the brain. My half-a-decade's worth of research helps us understand parasitic infections in the brain in a couple of ways: First, I have discovered one of the mechanisms by which neuronal connections are lost in the Toxo-infected brain (which is a mechanism that leads to loss of neuronal connections in the injured and aging brain as well). This is significant because it might provide insight into why some people who are infected with Toxo develop seizures or mental illness, while others don't. More importantly, Toxo-infection causes changes in the brain that are very specific, in terms of both the type of neuronal connection that is affected and the type of cell that is affected. Why these changes are so specific remain to be uncovered, but it suggests that Toxo can either a) trigger a unique immune response in the brain that leads to very precise changes in neuron-toneuron connections and signaling or b) the parasite, while hiding inside of neurons, may hijack the machinery of certain cell types in a way that helps them survive longer.

There is little information on the distribution and diversity of Apicomplexan protozoal infections in the tissues of raptors in the United States. Protozoan encephalitis caused by Sarcocystis species and Toxoplasma gondii is being increasingly reported in raptors from various locations in the United States. To better determine the exposure of raptors to these Apicomplexan parasites, we examined breast and heart muscle tissue of raptors from the Carolina Raptor Center for the presence of Sarcocystis species, T. gondii and Neospora caninum via histology, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) using DraI and HinfI enzymes (Sarocystis only). Of 187 available HandE stained tissue sections, 33 contained sarcocysts. Nineteen of these slides had a matching DNA sample to compare via PCR. Nine of these 19 were positive for Sarcocystis via ITS PCR. Using ITS PCR, we detected Sarcocystis DNA in 24 of 114 birds (21.1%). Further molecular differentiation using JNB primers showed that 9 of the 24 birds were positive for either S. neurona or S. falcatula. RFLP analysis of these 9 indicated that 4 were S. falcatula samples, and 3 were S. falcatula Arg samples that cut with both enzymes. Our Sarcocystis positive samples were also tested for S. calchasi, S. columbae and Sarcocystis sp. Ex. A. nisus using PCR primers designed for these species. These species are emerging in Europe and have already shown an expansion of their distribution. Two samples (14567 and 15203) suggestive of Sarcocystis sp. Ex. A. nisus were identified, as well as one sample (14567), which suggested the presence of S. columbae. None of these samples were confirmed by sequencing the amplicons and the other 22 samples were all negative for these parasites. Recent reports have demonstrated DNA of S. falcatula in the brain and muscles of great horned owls (Bubo virginianus), golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), and bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) with encephalitis in rehabilitation centers in Indiana, Minnesota, and Virginia using PCR. DNA of S. calchasi has been found in CNS tissue of several species of birds suffering encephalitis in an aviary in California. Hawks (Accipiter species) are believed to be the source of infection. The prevalence of T. gondii was 18.4% (21 of 114) in these birds by PCR, but none were positive by histopathology. N. caninum prevalence in raptors has been poorly discussed in the literature. This parasite uses canids as the definitive host in its life cycle, and is considered to have a much more restricted host range than T. gondii. Thirty-five of 114 birds (30.7%) were found to be PCR positive for N. caninum, but no tissue cysts of N. caninum were observed in histological sections. Co-infection of 2 or all 3 species was detected in 16 of 114 birds (14%). This study demonstrates that there may be a higher prevalence of S. falcatula in raptors than was previously known, including more, as yet unknown, species of Sarcocystis capable of infecting raptors as intermediate hosts. Our PCR prevalence for T. gondii is similar to the serological prevalence for this parasite in raptors. The high PCR prevalence of N. caninum needs to be confirmed by sequencing the amplicons and the use of additional PCR primers. Information from the present study may help to inform zoos, aviaries and wildlife rehabilitation centers about parasite host diversity and reinforce the importance of preventative measures, such as making sure opossums (S. falcatula and S. falcatula-like), feral cats (T. gondii), and wild raptors (S. calchasi) do not have access to facilities. Insect control should also be emphasized because of their ability to serve as phoretic hosts and carry oocysts/sporocysts into zoos, aviaries, and rehabilitation centers. / Master of Science