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Conference Agenda

Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).

Daily Overview

Session

Import to your local calendar

CP23: Zoonoses & One Health 2 - 15 min talk

Time:

Thursday, 02/July/2026:

3:30pm - 3:45pm

Session Chair: Catherine Gordon, QIMR Berghofer
Session Chair: Fasil Shiferaw, QIMR Berghofer

Location: Lecture Theatre 3

Boulevard Room 1

Presentations

Large-scale molecular epidemiological survey of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in Victoria, Australia (2020–2024) reveals novel subtypes and outbreak-associated lineage

Marielle Babineau^1,2, Anson Koehler², Michelle Sait³, Karolina Mercoulia³, Sally Dougall⁴, Jane McAllister⁴, Evelyn Wong⁴, Norelle Sherry^1,3, Robin Gasser², Ben Howden^1,3,5

¹Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; ²Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Melbourne Veterinary School, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia; ³Microbiological Diagnostic Unit Public Health Laboratory, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; ⁴Department of Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; ⁵Centre for Pathogen Genomics, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Cryptosporidium and Giardia are major causes of gastrointestinal illness globally. In Australia, cryptosporidiosis is notifiable, yet molecular characterisation is not routinely performed, limiting detection of outbreaks and zoonotic transmission. In 2024, Australia recorded a 273% increase in cryptosporidiosis notifications, the third-highest rise globally. Here, we conducted an epidemiological investigation of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in faecal samples from patients with gastroenteritis in Victoria between 2020 and 2024. Samples underwent SSU and gp60 sequencing for Cryptosporidium and tpi sequencing for Giardia, and parasite load was estimated. Of 2,330 samples, 225 were Cryptosporidium-positive and nine Giardia-positive. One Giardia isolate was sub-assemblage AI, two AII, and six assemblage B. Seven species and 24 subtypes were identified, including eight novel subtypes. Cryptosporidium hominis predominated (85%), followed by C. parvum and C. meleagridis. Six C. hominis subtypes were detected, three linked to 11 recreational water-associated outbreaks in 2024; IaA12R3 and IeA11G3T3 were most frequent, with concordance analysis suggesting 52 additional cases. Multiple C. parvum subtypes were identified, including two linked to childcare and camp outbreaks, and novel human-infective subtypes of C. occultus, C. fayeri, and C. meleagridis were detected. These findings highlight Cryptosporidium diversity in Victoria and the value of molecular surveillance for public health.