Cryptosporidium spp. is an important intestinal protozoan causing diarrhea among both healthy and immunocompromised patients especially those with HIV/AIDS. Cryptosporidium spp. can be transmitted via foodborne, waterborne and person-to-person routes. In addition, several Cryptosporidium species are zoonotic. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection among pigs raised in both smallholder (<50 heads/farm) and large scale farms (50–500 heads/farm) in Chonburi Province, eastern Thailand using nested PCR amplifying the small subunit of the ribosomal RNA (SSU-rRNA) gene. DNA sequencing was also performed to identify the species of Cryptosporidium. A total of 245 fecal samples were collected from 11 pig farms. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection was 20.8% (51/245) which were found in both smallholder and small large scale pig farms. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection among pigs aged ≤6 months was significantly higher than those aged >6 months (p < .001). Among 51 Cryptosporidium positive samples, Cryptosporidium scrofarum (42/51, 82.4%) and Cryptosporidium suis (9/51, 17.6%) were identified. The prevalence of C. scrofarum infection observed among pigs aged ≤6 months was significantly higher when compared with those aged >6 months (20.7% and 2.1%, respectively, p < .001). The high prevalence of C. scrofarum and C. suis infections among pigs could be a potential source of infection to humans.

隐孢子虫属。丙型肝炎是重要的肠道原生动物，可引起健康和免疫功能低下的患者，特别是艾滋病毒/艾滋病患者的腹泻。隐孢子虫属。可以通过食源，水源和人与人之间的途径传播。此外，几种隐孢子虫是人畜共患病的。本研究旨在确定泰国东部春武里府小农户（<50头/农场）和大型养殖场（50-500头/农场）饲养的猪中隐孢子虫感染的流行程度，采用巢式PCR扩增猪的小亚基。核糖体RNA（SSU-rRNA）基因。还进行了DNA测序以鉴定隐孢子虫的种类。从11个养猪场收集了245个粪便样品。在小农户和大型养猪场中，隐孢子虫感染的总体患病率为20.8％（51/245）。≤6个月的猪中隐孢子虫感染的发生率显着高于> 6个月的猪（p  <.001）。在51个隐孢子虫阳性样本中，鉴定出了阴囊隐孢子虫（42/51，82.4％）和猪隐孢子虫（9/51，17.6％）。小于6个月大的猪与6个月以上大的猪相比，阴囊念珠菌感染的患病率显着更高（分别为20.7％和2.1％，p <.001）。的高患病率C. scrofarum和C.猪的猪中的感染可能会传染给人类的潜在来源。