Abstract
Echinococcus multilocularis, causing alveolar echinococcosis in humans, is a highly pathogenic emerging zoonotic disease in central Europe. The gold standard for the identification of this parasite in the main host, the red fox, namely identification of the adult parasite in the intestine at necropsy, is very laborious. Copro-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with confirmatory polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been suggested as an acceptable alternative, but no commercial copro-ELISA tests are currently available and an in-house test is therefore required. Published methods for taeniid egg isolation and a multiplex PCR assay for simultaneous identification of E. multilocularis, E. granulosus and other cestodes were adapted to be carried out on pooled faecal samples from red foxes in Norway. None of the 483 fox faecal samples screened were PCR-positive for E. multilocularis, indicating an apparent prevalence of between 0% and 1.5%. The advantages and disadvantages of using the adapted method are discussed as well as the results pertaining to taeniid and non-taeniid cestodes as identified by multiplex PCR.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank all the hunters who participated in the study as well as Nina Tvedt and Marthe Opland, Section for Wildlife Diseases, for their help with the logistics, and Inger Sofie Hamnes and Kristin Henriksen, Section for Parasitology, for their help with laboratory work. This work was funded by the Norwegian Food Health Safety Authority.
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Davidson, R.K., Øines, Ø., Madslien, K. et al. Echinococcus multilocularis—adaptation of a worm egg isolation procedure coupled with a multiplex PCR assay to carry out large-scale screening of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Norway. Parasitol Res 104, 509–514 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-008-1222-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-008-1222-y