The prevalence and molecular characterization of coenurus cerebralis in sheep slaughtered in a slaughtered in Diyarbakir region

Taenia multiceps is a taeniid cestode that lives in the small intestine of both wild and domesticated carnivores. The larval stage, Coenurus cerebralis, is typically found in various farm animals' central nervous systems and sheep and goats' extra-brain tissues. This study determined the prevalence of C. cerebralis in sheep in Diyarbakır region as 9.8%. The cysts collected in the study were molecularly characterized using Cytochrome C Oxidase subunit 1 in the mitochondrial gene. Low genetic diversity (up to 0.24%) was found among the COX1 gene sequences of T.multiceps isolates. In conclusion, to prevent Coenuriasis in regions where sheep breeding is widespread, we believe that it is essential to develop new strategies related to flock health and treat dogs, which play an active role in transmission, with effective anti-parasitic drugs. Keywords: Coenurus cerebralis, Sheep, Taenia multiceps