Abstract
Aim:Echinococcus and Taenia spp. are important but neglected zoonotic helminths of dogs. Dogs as the most relevant definitive hosts harbor several species of Taenia and Echinococcus simultaneously in their gastrointestinal lumen which are morphologically indistinguishable. In this study, we used a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to identify Taeniid infections which seem to be highly distributed in the study region.Materials and Methods:A total of 450 dog fecal samples were collected from eight different areas of Zanjan province, northwest of Iran, and examined using a flotation method followed by multiplex PCR for detection and identification of parasites’ eggs.Results:Gastrointestinal parasites were found in 86 out of 450 fecal samples (19.1%) by microscopic examination. Taeniid eggs were observed in 5.6% of samples, containing 0.45%, 3.8%, and 1.3% Echinococcus granulosus, Taenia spp., and mix infection of both E. granulosus and Taenia spp., respectively. Echinococcus multilocularis was absent in the samples.Conclusion:A relatively low rate of E. granulosus (1.8%) was observed in this study. However, risks of this parasite should not be overlooked, and control programs need to be extended for this species and other Taeniid spp. In particular, dogs are recommended to be dewormed more frequently.
Highlights
Dogs as animals that are involved with human life and environment harbor a number of important zoonotic helminth infections some of which are Taeniid cestodes [1,2]
Taeniid eggs were observed in 5.6% of samples, containing 0.45%, 3.8%, and 1.3% Echinococcus granulosus, Taenia spp., and mix infection of both E. granulosus and Taenia spp., respectively
The results of this study showed a relatively high rate of parasitic infection in dog feces dispersed in the environment of the study region in northwest of Iran, consisting of several parasite species, including Echinococcus and Taenia spp
Summary
Dogs as animals that are involved with human life and environment harbor a number of important zoonotic helminth infections some of which are Taeniid cestodes [1,2]. The important species of Taeniidae family presented in dogs include Echinococcus granulosus, Echinococcus multilocularis, Taenia ovis, Taenia multiceps, and Taenia hydatigena. Among these parasites, two major species, E. granulosus and E. multilocularis, are highly important from a medical and public health standpoint [3,4,5]. Canids can pass several species of Taenia and Echinococcus eggs simultaneously. They are microscopically indistinguishable, and other methods are required for simple and reliable identification of Copyright: Kohansal, et al Open Access. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated
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