Study of the inter- and intraspecific variation of Eimeria spp. from the rabbit using random amplified polymorphic DNA.

A genetic polymorphism study was performed in coccidia from the rabbit. A comparative analysis of the RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA)-generated fingerprints, using 11 arbitrary primers, was carried out (1) in nine Eimeria species (E. intestinalis, E. magna, E. piriformis, E. flavescens, E. vejdovskyi, E. coecicola, E. perforans, E. exigua, and E. media) and (2) in two strains of E. intestinalis and four strains of E. media originating from different geographic areas. For each of these four strains of E. media, three lines deriving from the multiplication of a single oocyst were compared. All the primers tested yielded about ten amplified fragments. The profiles obtained differed considerably according to the species; thus, it was not possible to establish a phylogeny. On the other hand, species-specific fingerprints were observed, showing that RAPD assays might be useful for diagnosis. In E. media, analysis of the RAPD products showed weak differences between each of the four strains but nevertheless allowed differentiation of the lines deriving from the multiplication of one oocyst. Similar results were obtained with three methods of analysis: correspondence analysis, the hierarchical unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic averages (UP-GMA), and parsimony analysis. RAPD proved to be a useful technique for these intraspecific studies.