College of Veterinary Medicine

The College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Mosul held a defense for the master’s thesis titled:

“Detection of Intestinal Protozoa in Cats and Molecular Identification of Common Species.”

The study was presented by graduate student Afrah Masoud Abdulhamid, specializing in Veterinary Parasitology, on Tuesday, August 26, 2025.

The research involved the identification of several intestinal protozoa, including:

• Cystoisospora spp.
• Toxoplasma gondii
• Cryptosporidium spp.
• Giardia spp.
• Entamoeba spp.

Molecular diagnostics were performed on selected common protozoa identified in the study. Notably, five isolates were registered for the first time in the GenBank database under the accession numbers:

LC856630.1, LC856631.1, LC856632.1, LC856633.1, LC856634.1

The study also completed nested PCR reactions using complementary primers, resulting in the registration of two strains under the identifiers:

PV788689 and PV788690

Additionally, five isolates of Toxoplasma gondii were deposited in GenBank under the accession numbers:

LC858431, LC858432, LC858433, LC858434, LC858435

Molecular methods also confirmed the diagnosis of Cryptosporidium spp.

The thesis committee consisted of the following esteemed faculty members:

1. Prof. M.A.B. Ibrahim Al-Farouji – Chair (University of Mosul)
2. Prof. Haitham Sadiq Abdullah – Member (University of Mosul)
3. Assist. Prof. Ali Issa Fadhil – Member (University of Baghdad)
4. Prof. Wasan Amjad Ahmed – Member and Supervisor (University of Mosul)

Following a confident and scientifically rigorous defense, the thesis was approved by the committee.

Congratulations to the researcher, the supervisor, the College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Department of Microbiology on this scientific achievement. This defense contributes to the realization of Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education.

University of Mosul

College of Veterinary Medicine

Department of Microbiology