High prevalence of Trichinella spp. in sylvatic carnivore mammals of Latvia

Abstract

Trichinella spp. are zoonotic parasites transmitted to humans by the consumption of raw or insufficiently cooked meat of different animal species. Carnivore mammals are important reservoir hosts of these nematodes. The aims of this work were to establish the prevalence of Trichinella spp. and infection intensity in sylvatic carnivore mammals of Latvia, to identify the etiological agents at the species level and their circulation in the Latvian regions. From 2010 to 2014, muscle samples were collected from 1286 hunted animals (2 European badgers, 137 pine martens, 24 stone martens, 4 golden jackals, 394 raccoon dogs, 668 red foxes, 23 grey wolves, and 34 Eurasian lynxes). Trichinella spp. larvae were isolated by muscle digestion. Overall, 633 animals (49.2%; 95% CI 46.5%-52.0%) belonging to all the eight investigated species, tested positive for Trichinella spp. larvae. Trichinella britovi was the most common species (94.0%; 95% CI 91.7%–95.7%). Trichinella nativa was detected in 30 animals as single (6, 1.1%; 95% CI 0.4%–2.3%) or mixed infection (24, 4.4%; 95% CI 2.9%–6.4%) with T. britovi. Trichinella spiralis was detected in only three animals as mixed infection with T. britovi. The high prevalence of Trichinella spp. infection in sylvatic carnivore mammals suggests that they are good indicators for the risk assessment of Trichinella spp. in Latvia.