ABSTRACT
Babesia is a tick-borne, intraerythrocytic protozoan that causes a hemolytic disease known as babesiosis (whose former or alternative names include piroplasmosis, Texas cattle fever, redwater fever, tick fever, and Nantucket fever), with clinical symptoms resembling those of malaria. Recognized as a disease of veterinary importance, babesiosis occurs commonly in cattle but also in horses, sheep, pigs, and dogs. In fact, Babesia spp. represent the second most common blood-borne parasites of mammals after trypanosomes. In recent years, babesiosis has attracted increasing attention as a zoonotic infection in human [1-3].
