Prevalence of Trichinella britovi in muscle tissue samples from foxes from Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Poland

Abstract

The aim of the study was to detect Trichinella larvae in muscle tissue samples of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) living in Podkarpackie Voivodeship and to determine their species composition. Muscle tissue samples had been collected from a total number of 139 red foxes culled during 2011-2012 in Podkarpackie Voivodeship and studied for the presence of Trichinella. Ten-gram muscle tissue samples were collected from each animal, combined into a fifty-gram pooled sample and then tested for the presence of Trichinella by the reference method for pooled sample digestion with a magnetic stirrer. Whenever a pooled sample gave a positive result, the suspected animals were resampled, and each ten-gram muscle tissue sample was tested separately. Trichinella larvae were identified to species by Multiplex PCR. The studies revealed the presence of one Trichinella larva in a pooled sample composed of five individual samples from foxes culled in the following locations: Leszczowate in Bieszczadzki District (one sample), Szczutków in Lubaczowski District (two samples), Podemszczyzna in Lubaczowski District (one sample) and Strzyżów in Strzyżowski District (one sample). No Trichinella larvae were detected during the test carried out on individual samples that composed the pooled sample. Numerous Trichinella larvae were found in samples from 4 foxes coming from Berezka and Glinka in Leski District, Dybawka in Przemyski District, and Golcowa in Brzozowski District. All Trichinella larvae isolated from the foxes belonged to the species T. britovi. The study confirmed the role of foxes as an important vector of Trichinella larvae circulating in the habitat of humans and animals. T. britovi is a species occurring most frequently in the fox population.