Parasitological and Molecular Study of Toxocara Spp. in Lumbericus Terrestricus Earthworms Publisher



Rasouli E¹ ; Zibaei M^{2, 3} ; Bahadory S⁴ ; Hosseini H² ; Firoozeh F^{5, 6}
Source: Bulgarian Journal of Veterinary Medicine Published:2020

Abstract

Soil-associated invertebrates which are coprophagic are capable of acting as paratenic hosts for Toxo-cara species larvae eggs. The aim of the present study was to assess the role of Lumbricus terrestris earthworms as potential intermediate host for Toxocara species. A total of 240 earthworms were collected from the public places in four areas of Karaj, Alborz Province, Iran. The subjects of the study were digested to detect Toxocara species using microscopy and molecular analyses. Toxocara larvae and larval eggs were recovered from 1.7% (4/240) of the sampled earthworms. The recovery rate in Shah'Abbasi and Talaghani regions in the studied areas was higher than that of the other regions. In the mentioned area, 8.3% (4/48) of earthworms were revealed to be positive for Toxocara species by microscopic observation and only one was confirmed to be positive for Toxocara canis by poly-merase chain reaction (PCR). This is the first molecular report of Toxocara canis infective larvae in Lumbricus terrestris earthworms that could be demonstrated in common environment. © 2020, Trakia University. All rights reserved.