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Prevalence and genotyping of Echinococcus granulosus in sheep in Narok County, Kenya

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Abstract

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a zoonotic disease caused by the larval stage of Echinococcus granulosus species (sensu lato, s.l.). In East Africa, several species/strains occur in livestock, wildlife, and humans, but there is limited information on frequencies of infection by different genotypes in the various mammalian hosts. We have obtained data on E. granulosus infection prevalence in sheep sampled from abattoirs in Narok County, southern Kenya. We inspected carcasses for the presence of hydatid cysts in 180 sheep randomly selected in five sub-locations. The overall prevalence was 16.0% (144/900 animals), with the majority of cysts (50.7%) found in the liver, followed by the lungs (36.8%), while infections involving the liver and lungs were detected in 12.5% of the sheep. PCR–RFLP genotyping of the mitochondrial nad-1 gene in all the 343 cysts identified E. granulosus G1–G3 (sensu stricto, s.s.) as the only genotype. The majority of the cysts (62.1%) were fertile, and 35.2% were sterile, while 2.7% were calcified. Considering cyst fertility, 73.02% of lung cysts were fertile compared to 53.4% in liver cysts. Our data extends previous CE studies in livestock and indicates a high level of CE infection of sheep in Narok, with a predominance of E. granulosus s.s., which is highly pathogenic and commonly infects humans. Given the high fertility rates observed in the cysts, there is an urgent need to determine whether there is a significant incidence of human infection in Narok, and initiate “One Health” control measures.

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Funding

The study was financially supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Cystic Echinococcosis in sub-Saharan Africa Research Initiative (CESSARi), DFG projects KE282/7-1, -8-1, RO3753/1-1, -2-1). David Odongo was a research fellow supported by the Biosciences eastern and central Africa (BecA-ILRI) which is implemented under the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), through funding from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). We acknowledge the financial support provided to the Biosciences eastern and central Africa Hub at the International Livestock Research Institute (BecA-ILRI Hub) by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) through a partnership between Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and the BecA-ILRI Hub, and by the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture (SFSA).

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Author notes

  1. R. P. Bishop

    Present address: Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology and Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biological Sciences, University of Nairobi, P.O Box 30197, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya

    D. O. Odongo & C. M. Tiampati

  2. Biosciences Eastern and Central Africa - International Livestock Research Institute (BecA-ILRI) Hub, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya

    D. O. Odongo & R. P. Bishop

  3. Center for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, P.O. Box 54840, Nairobi, 00200, Kenya

    E. Mulinge & C. K. Mbae

  4. Meru University of Science and Technology, Meru, Kenya

    E. Zeyhle & J. Magambo

  5. Department of Parasitology, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany

    M. Wasserman & T. Romig

  6. Comprehensive Infectious Diseases Center, Ulm University Hospitals, Albert-Einstein-Allee 23, 89081, Ulm, Germany

    P. Kern

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  1. D. O. Odongo
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  2. C. M. Tiampati
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  3. E. Mulinge
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  4. C. K. Mbae
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Correspondence to D. O. Odongo.

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All applicable national and institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Odongo, D.O., Tiampati, C.M., Mulinge, E. et al. Prevalence and genotyping of Echinococcus granulosus in sheep in Narok County, Kenya. Parasitol Res 117, 2065–2073 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-018-5889-4

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