Isolation and molecular identification of liver fluke cercariae in freshwater snails of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iran

Abstract

ABSTRACT Liver flukes are parasitic flatworms that can infect humans and other mammals. In this study, freshwater snails from Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province in Iran were investigated for the presence of liver fluke larvae. The snails were collected from various rivers and analysed using standard morphological and molecular techniques. Additionally, molecular identification of the collected snails was conducted through polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of the COI gene. The freshwater snails were identified as Physella acuta (Draparnaud, 1805), Galba truncatula (O.F. Müller, 1774), Radix euphratica (Mousson, 1874), Radix auricularia (Linnaeus, 1758) and Planorbis planorbis (Linnaeus, 1758). The presence of larval stages of Fasciola spp. in individual snails was examined using stereomicroscopy and a crushing method. Morphological and molecular identification based on the ITS-1 marker for identifying Fasciola spp. revealed that 10.9% (59 out of 549) of R. auricularia and 5.8% (37 out of 630) of P. acuta were infected. A blastn analysis of the collected samples revealed that all isolates belonged to F. hepatica, indicating a potential risk of liver fluke infection in the study area. These findings emphasise the importance of regular surveillance and control measures to prevent the spread of these parasites.