Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is caused by Babesia caballi and Theileria equi infection. We investigated antigen and antibody of EP in horses in the Republic of Korea during 2016-2017. Antigen and antibody of T. equi was detected 0.06% (1/1,650). Phylogenetic analysis of 18S rRNA revealed that the T. equi was highly homologous with the strains from China, Mongolia, and Spain. Two Theileria spp. were also detected and highly homologous with T. buffeli, T. luwehshuni, and T. orientalis.

Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is caused by Babesia caballi and Theileria equi infection. We investigated antigen and antibody of EP in horses in the Republic of Korea during 2016-2017. Antigen and antibody of T. equi was detected 0.06% (1/1,650). Phylogenetic analysis of 18S rRNA revealed that the T. equi was highly homologous with the strains from China, Mongolia, and Spain. Two Theileria spp. were also detected and highly homologous with T. buffeli, T. luwehshuni, and T. orientalis.

Objective: To screen the fatty acid (FA) composition of 20 marine microalgae species, including seven Diophyceae, six Bacillariophyceae, four Chlorophyceae, two Haptophyceae and one Raphidophyceae species. Methods: Microalgal cells cultured at the Korea Institute of Ocean Science & Technology were harvested during the late exponential growth phase and the FA composition analyzed. Results: The FA composition of microalgae was species-specific. For example, seven different species of Dinophyceae were composed primarily of C14:0, C16:0, C18:0, C20:4n-6, C20:5n-3 and C22:6n-3, while C14:0, C16:0, C16:1, C18:0, C20:5n-3 and C22:6n-3 were abundant FAs in six species of Bacillariophyceae. In addition, four Chlorophyceae, two Haptophyceae and one Raphidophyceae species all contained a high degree of C16:1n-7 [(9.28-34.91)% and (34.48-35.04)%], C14:0 [(13.34-25.96)%] and [(26.69-28.24)%], and C16:0 [(5.89-29.15)%] and [(5.70-16.81)%]. Several factors contribute to the nutritional value of microalgae, including the polyunsaturated FA content and n-3 to n-6 FA ratio, which could be used to assess the nutritional quality of microalgae. Conclusions: This study is the first comprehensive assessment of the FA composition and nutritional value of microalgae species in South Korea, and identifies the potential utility of FAs as species-specific biomarkers.