Comparison of internal transcribed spacers and intergenic spacer regions of five common Iranian sheep bursate nematodes.

Background: Accurate identification of sheep nematodes is a critical point in epidemiological studies and monitoring of drug resistance in flocks. However, due to a close morphological similarity between the eggs and larval stages of many of these nematodes, such identification is not a trivial task. There are a number of studies showing that molecular targets in ribosomal DNA (Internal transcribed spacer 1, 2 and Intergenic spacer) are suitable for accurate identification of sheep bursate nematodes.