Caprine cryptosporidiosis mainly occurs in young goats, with morbidity rates of 80%–100% and mortality over 50% in goat kids. However, limited research has been conducted on the impact of Cryptosporidium parvum, a diarrhea-causing pathogen, on the intestinal microbiota of goat kids. In this study, 16S rRNA-based metataxonomic analysis was performed to compare the microbial diversity and abundance of the gut microbiota between C. parvum-infected and uninfected goat kids. In total, 12 goat fecal samples were collected, including seven naturally C. parvum-infected and five uninfected goats from Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea. After amplification of the V3–V4 hypervariable region of the bacterial 16S rRNA, high-throughput sequencing was performed. The results showed differences in the microbial composition between C. parvum-infected and uninfected groups based on beta diversity. Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were the most dominant phyla in both groups. However, no significant difference was observed in the Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio between the two groups. Compared with the uninfected group, the C. parvum-infected group showed significantly higher abundances of Tyzzerella nexillis, Lactobacillus johnsonii, Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum, Enterococcus raffinosus, Enterococcus faecalis, and Negativicoccus massiliensis, and significantly reduced abundances of Aerococcus vaginalis, Faecalicoccus pleomorphus, Oribacterium parvum, and Coprococcus comes. These findings indicate that C. parvum infection, which is associated with diarrhea in neonatal goats, induces alterations in the caprine gut microbiota.

Over the past decade, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and platelet derivatives have been widely investigated in the field of regenerative medicine due to their high concentrations of platelet- related growth factors, cytokines, and other proteins. Recently, many clinical studies have suggested their regenerative therapeutic efficacy in treating several disorders in medical field. However, their therapeutic applications are not well characterized in veterinary medicine as in human and experimental animals. This article reviews functional roles of platelets, scientific concepts, and clinical use of PRP and platelet derivatives in veterinary medicine. It also presents guidelines for veterinary applications of PRP in the future.