RESUMO
Hydatidosis is one of the most important parasitic zoonosis and remains a public health and economic problem all over the world. The disease is endemic in many parts of the world. Reports on the species and strains of Echinococcus present in Egypt appear controversial. In the present study hydatid cysts were collected from freshly slaughtered camel at local abattoir, Assiut, Egypt. Hydatid cysts were genetically characterized by polymerase chain reaction [PCR] amplification and sequencing of internal transcribed spacer genes one and two [ITS1 and ITS2] of nuclear ribosomal DNA [rDNA] by using specific primers. The lengths of ITS1 and ITS2 sequences were 583 bp and 517 bp respectively for hydatid sample sequenced. Comparisons of ITS sequences of the examined hydatid sample in the present study revealed that collected hydatid represented Echinococcus Canadensis, which provides foundation for further studies on Echinococcus in Egypt. The data obtained will facilitate the development of diagnostic tools necessary to study the population genetic structure and epidemiology of this enigmatic parasite