Background: Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection caused by an intracellular protozoan named Toxoplasma gondii. Its prevalence had been investigated in several studies throughout the world showing that it varied from one country to another. In contrast, few studies had been carried out on this infection across the kingdom of Morocco, hence the objective of this work, which is the determination of Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence in the region of Marrakech-Safi. Methods: The serological results of a cohort of 5692 patients were reviewed retrospectively. Those patients had been into dif- ferent public and private medical laboratories in the region of Marrakech-Safi for a toxoplasmosis serology, requested between the 1st January, 2014 and 31st December, 2016. According to each laboratory, the techniques adopted for this serology were ELISA (ELFA, MEIA, EIA) and CMIA. Results: The results showed that for pregnant women, the overall seroprevalence in the study region were 28.88%. Conclusion: The variation of Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence is related not only to climatic factors but also to lifestyle, eating habits, socio-economic status and hygiene conditions. In this study, we noticed that in Morocco, as in other countries, pregnant women encounter several difficulties when serologic screening for toxoplasmosis. Keywords: Seroprevalence; toxoplasmosis; pregnant women; Marrakech-Safi region.

Background: Protozoan parasites such as Toxoplasma gondii, Giardia duodenalis, and Cryptosporidium spp., can be transmitted to humans via accidental consumption of contaminated water, fresh produce and foodstuffs. There is a lack of epidemiological data about these pathogens in Morocco. Hence the aim of this study, which is the determination of their prevalence in some leafy greens and root vegetables sold in Marrakech. Methods: A total of 132 vegetable samples including carrot, coriander, lettuce, parsley and radish were purchased monthly from three different markets in Marrakech from March 2017 to January 2018, pre-treated and subjected to microscopic and molecular analyses. Results: Of the 132 samples of vegetables analyzed by qPCR, the overall rate of protozoan was 21.21% (28/132); 22 samples were found to be contaminated with T. gondii, 6 with G. duodenalis, and none was positive for C. parvum/hominis. Whereas, modified Ziehl-Neelsen staining allowed the detection of Cryptosporidium spp. in 3% (4/132) of examined samples. Conclusion: This survey on the presence of protozoan parasites in fresh vegetables revealed that vegetables sold in Marrakech are contaminated by these protozoan parasites, as it showed that leafy green vegetables were more susceptible for parasitic contamination than root ones. Keywords: Fresh vegetables; protozoan parasites; Marrakech; qPCR.

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