~ 2236 ~ The Pharma Innovation Journal 2022; SP-11(7): 2236-2240 ISSN (E): 2277-7695 ISSN (P): 2349-8242 NAAS Rating: 5.23 TPI 2022; SP-11(7): 2236-2240 © 2022 TPI www.thepharmajournal.com Received: 01-05-2022 Accepted: 05-06-2022 Sarjna Meena Assistant Professor, Department of Veterinary Pathology, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Rohitash Dadhich Professor & Head, Department of Veterinary Pathology, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Sanjita Sharma Professor & Head, Livestock Production Management, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Dharm Singh Meena Professor & Head, Department of Veterinary Medicine, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Sandeep Ku. Sharma Assistant Professor & Incharge, Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Biotechnology, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Anita Rathore Assistant Professor, Department of Veterinary Pathology, CVAS, Navania, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India Sandeep Marodia Assistant Professor, Department of Veterinary Clinical Complex, Apollo College of Veterinary Medicine, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Rashmi Singh Assistant Professor, Department of Veterinary Medicine, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Corresponding Author Sarjna Meena Assistant Professor, Department of Veterinary Pathology, Post Graduate Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India Cytopathological and histopathological studies on Sarcocystis in oesophagus of goat Sarjna Meena, Rohitash Dadhich, Sanjita Sharma, Dharm Singh Meena, Sandeep Ku. Sharma, Anita Rathore, Sandeep Marodia and Rashmi Singh Abstract Sarcocystosis is a silent zoonotic parasitic disease caused by an obligatory intracellular coccidian protozoan of the genus Sarcocystis with a worldwide geographic distribution. The present investigation was carried out to record the prevalence, cytopathological and histopathological findings of Sarcocystosis in oesophagus of goat in Jaipur, Rajasthan. In this study, a total of 1115 of digestive tract samples were collected from goats, irrespective of age groups, breeds and sex. Out of the total 1115 samples, 152 representative samples of oesophagus were processed for subsequent cytopathological and histopathological examinations. The results of the present study revealed an overall prevalence of sarcocystosis as 13.63 per cent. After investigated esophagi, the goat had been infected with both types, macroscopic and microscopic cysts for the infection. During gross examination, only in four cases (0.35%) macroscopic sarcocysts noticed, in the form of many white to pale, oval fat (macro), grain sized, multifocal nodules on outer surface and in the majority of cases microsarcocysts were evident in oesophgeal muscles. In cytopathology, giemsa stained impression smears, collected from the oesophagi were found positive for microscopic sarcocysts and banana-shaped bradyzoites in clusters as well as individually. Histopathologically, the study depicted the presence of several forms of microscopic cyst, including spindle, circular, elliptical, cylindrical and twisted form in esophagus. Microscopically, these appeared as blue colour sarcocysts contained bradyzoites in tunica muscularis including both thin-walled and thick-walled. Individual microcyst was surrounded by single layer of muscle fibers and degeneration and necrosis of muscle bundles were prominent. Hence, this study is one of the very few studies which have investigated the cytodiagnosis of zoonotic disease in veterinary sciences. It contributes in the existing literature on cytohistopathological diagnosis of the Sarcocystosis not only in goats but also in other meat producing animals. In present investigation, the prevalence was primarily related to the presence of microsarcocysts in muscles. Thus, microscopic examination of slide impression smears collected from the meat is essential to diagnose the Sarcocystosis for screening of the disease. It is recommended that meat should be cooked sufficiently or frozen before use to prevent health hazards to the consumer. Keywords: Cytodiagnosis, bradyzoites, sarcocysts, prevalence, goat Introduction Sarcocystosis caused by the genus Sarcocystis, is widespread in livestock and has significant economic impact on production of domestic animals as well as on health, may cause mortality in many species of domestic and wild animals. Sarcocystis species are intracellular protozoan parasites with a requisite two host life cycle based on a prey-predator (intermediate- definitive) host relationship (Narnaware et al., 2016) [17] . This genus consists of more than 189 species with global distribution (Poulsen et al., 2014) [19] . The majority of the known Sarcocystis spp. appear to be intermediate host-specific (Gjerde., 2016) [8] . A wide range of vertebrates, including mammals, birds, and fish, are infected by Sarcocystis spp. Merogony and cyst formation (asexual stage) occur in the vascular endothelial and striated muscle cells of the intermediate host (Herbivores and omnivores, such as humans serve as both intermediate and definitive hosts) whereas gametogony and sporogony (sexual stages) occur in the intestine mucosa of definitive host (Fukuyo, et al., 2002 [7] , Hoeve-Bakker et al., 2019) [10] . Definitive hosts are infected through the ingestion of Sarcocystis in muscle tissues, which include carnivorous predators, scavengers, as well as humans. Intermediate hosts become infected through the ingestion of sporocysts present in feed or water contaminated by fecal materials of definitive hosts (Gjerde, 2016) [8] . The multiplication within striated muscle cells leads to the formation of mature sarcocysts, which have a characteristic morphology for each species, and