Paper Title
Prevalence and Molecular Characterization of Enterocytozoon Bieneusi from Cattle in Korea

Abstract
Enterocytozoon bieneusi is one of the microsporidia species that can cause diarrhea and is commonly affecting human and animals that include cattle. Fresh fecal samples were collected from 1,342 cattle throughout Korea from November 2013 to August 2016. Among the 1,342 samples, 312 (23.2%) tested positive for E. bieneusi, as determined by a nested polymerase chain reaction and sequencing analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal RNA gene of E. bieneusi. The central region had significantly higher prevalence compared to other regions. Calves aged 4–12 m (31.5%) has the highest prevalence, followed by pre-weaned calves aged 1 wk–3 m (22.6%), and adults older than 1 y of age (16.1%). E. bieneusi infection was also observed to be more prevalent during the spring season than other seasons. The prevalence was significantly higher in beef cattle (24.5%) than in dairy cattle (10.3%). After the ITS sequencing analysis, 4 new genotypes (B-F-63, B-F-680, B-F-3, and B-F-51) were revealed which are all clustered in Group 2, a group that is composed of genotypes detected in humans, cattle, dogs, and cats. The identification of the genotypes in cattle from different regions in Korea indicated a potential risk of zoonotic infections and may suggest the involvement of cattle in the transmission of such infections to humans. Keywords - Enterocytozoon bieneusi, cattle, prevalence, genotyping.