Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite which infects a wide variety of mammals and birds worldwide, including humans. Human toxoplasmosis is primarily transmitted through the ingestion of tissue cysts in raw or poorly cooked meat and organs of infected animals, or through the ingestion of oocysts in food, water or soil contaminated with cat faeces. There is a distinct paucity of information on the prevalence and molecular characteristics of T. gondii in retail meats in Canada. This study reports the presence of T. gondii DNA in 4.3% (12 of 281) of packages of fresh ground beef, chicken breasts and ground pork purchased at retail in three Canadian provinces. T. gondii prevalence was very similar among all three meat types tested, and among the provinces sampled. Genotyping of positive samples by means of PCR-RFLP and DNA sequencing demonstrated the presence of both T. gondii type II (66.7%) and type III (33.3%). These findings provide baseline data on the prevalence of T. gondii DNA in fresh meats purchased at retail in Canada and will allow for more accurate and meaningful health risk assessments for the purposes of developing food safety guidelines and policies.
Highlights
Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite found worldwide in virtually all mammals and birds (Reviewed in Hill et al, 2005; Dubey, 2010)
These findings provide baseline data on the prevalence of T. gondii DNA in fresh meats purchased at retail in Canada and will allow for more accurate and meaningful health risk assessments for the purposes of developing food safety guidelines and policies
While surveillance studies have been done worldwide to determine the prevalence of T. gondii in retail meats (Reviewed in Guo et al, 2015), the present study represents the first large-scale surveillance study done in Canada
Summary
Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite found worldwide in virtually all mammals and birds (Reviewed in Hill et al, 2005; Dubey, 2010). Cats and other felids represent the only definitive hosts in the life cycle of T. gondii, and are responsible for shedding oocysts into the environment which become infectious to intermediate hosts, including humans and meat animals (Reviewed in Pereira et al, 2010). While humans may become infected with T. gondii through the ingestion of oocysts in food, soil or water, transmission commonly occurs through the ingestion of tissue cysts in raw or inadequately cooked meats. Raw or undercooked meat has been reported to be a risk for T. gondii infections in numerous outbreak investigations and epidemiological studies (Reviewed in Jones and Dubey, 2012). Infections with T. gondii are generally asymptomatic in humans, mild flu-like symptoms are not uncommon (Reviewed in Dubey, 2010). Infected infants may be severely affected (e.g., intellectual disability, hydrocephalus, retinochoroiditis, hepatosplenomegaly)
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