ABSTRACT
Fasciolosis in livestock is a crucial concern in the globe, mainly due to its impact on human health. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of infection with Fasciola gigantica [Cobbold, 1855] larvae in the field-collected snails of Lymnaea auricularia [Linnaeus, 1785] from northwestern Iran using a molecular approach. A total of 6,759 pond snails were collected from 28 freshwater bodies in West Azarbaijan. PCR was performed to amplify a 618-bp fragment of the nu-clear 28 SrRNA gene of Fasciola. The PCR products were digested by AvaII re-striction enzyme to create restriction fragment length polymorphism [RFLP] pat-terns specific for the detection of F. gigantica. Of the total collected snails 496 [7.34%] were L. auricularia, among which 4.64% [23 out of 496] were infected with a Fasciola species according to the PCR analysis. Only 2.22% [11 out of 496] of the infected snails were from the mountainous areas. The highest Fasciola infection rate recorded in the snails of a single site was 1.81% [9 out of 496 snails]. Based on the RFLP pattern, F. gigantica accounted for 2.42% of the infection rates in the study sites. Application of PCR-RFLP was proven to be a useful approach for valid and robust detection of the infection with F. gigantica in its intermediate host snails. These findings may therefore be applicable for establishment of the control programs against dissemination of the infection in different regions
ABSTRACT
Trematodes are a diverse group of endoparasites which require molluscan and vertebrate animals as intermediate and definitive hosts in their life cycle. The present study was carried out to determine the diversity and geographic distribution of infection with trematodes'cercariae in the snail Lymnaea gedrosiana from north-west Iran. A total number of 6759 Lymnaeidae snails were collected from 28 snail habitats; of these L. gedrosiana was the prevalent snail [74.37%] which examined for cercarial infection by shedding method. The overall infection rate was 8.03%. The most frequent trematodes cercariae in the snail were xiphidiocercariae [81.98%], furcocercariae [32.26%], echinostome cercariae [5.19%], and monostome cercariae [1.24%]. The highest infection rate in L. gedrosiana [100%] was with echinostome cercariae from Golestaneh in autumn. Due to the important role of pond snails in transmission of cercariae to fish as a source of zoonotic diseases, it is essential to estimate the distribution and abundance of the snails and the rate of their infection with different trema-todes' cercariae, and establish control programs in each region