Hunting and Stray Dogs as Reservoirs of <i>Echinococcus</i> Species.

Abstract

In Serbia, human echinococcosis cases are predominantly diagnosed as the cystic form, caused by <i>Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato</i> (<i>s. l.</i>) complex tapeworms. Alveolar echinococcosis, a more severe disease caused by <i>Echinococcus multilocularis</i>, emerged recently. Domestic dogs have been implicated in the transmission of <i>E. granulosus sensu stricto</i> G1/3 to humans. In an ongoing screening of definitive hosts for the presence of <i>Echinococcus</i> spp. to discover reservoirs of <i>E. multilocularis</i>, fecal samples of hunting (n = 29) and stray dogs (n = 66) were examined. Taeniid eggs were collected using flotation and mesh filtration. The presence of Cyclophyllidea, <i>E. granulosus s. l.</i> and <i>E. multilocularis</i> DNA was detected by specific PCR assays. In total, 60% of the fecal samples contained cyclophyllidean DNA, while <i>Echinococcus</i> spp. DNA was detected in 7.4% of the samples. <i>E. canadensis</i> G6-8,10 DNA was present in 4.2% and <i>E. multilocularis</i> in 3.2% of the samples. <i>E. multilocularis</i> DNA was detected only in stray dog feces, suggesting that strays are a reservoir and possibly an important link in the transmission chain. To the best of our knowledge, this study provides the first molecular identification of <i>Echinococcus</i> spp. in dogs in Serbia.