Echinococcosis: A brief review

Abstract

Echinococcosis (hydatid disease) is the infection of humans by the larval stages of taeniid cestodes of the genus Echinococcus. Three species of public health importance, Echinococcus granulosus, E. multilocularis, and E. vogeli respectively, cause cystic, alveolar and polycystic echinococcosis respectively, and are the subject of this review. Several studies have shown that these diseases are an increasing public health concern and that both can be regarded as emerging or re-emerging diseases. In this review, we discuss aspects of their biology, life cycle, etiology, distribution, and transmission of the Echinococcus organisms, and the epidemiology, clinical features, treatment, and effect of improved diagnosis of the diseases they cause. New sensitive and specific diagnostic methods and effective therapeutic approaches against echinococcosis have been developed in the last 10 years. Despite some progress in the control of echinococcosis, this zoonosis continues to be a major public health problem in several countries and in several others; it constitutes an emerging and re-emerging disease.

Design of a Novel Multi-Epitope Vaccine Against Echinococcus granulosus in Immunoinformatics

“…In China, it belongs to the class II of animal epidemic. The first Chinese epidemiological survey of CE indicated that the prevalence range of disease is wide, the self-protection awareness of the crowd is poor, the propaganda and control power of disease is weak and the number of infected persons and the burden of social treatment ranked firstly in the world for China (3,4). E. g mainly parasitizes in the liver and lung and easily to form a cyst even endanger life, with high fatality rate (5,6).…”

Use of PCR-RFLP for Genetic Characterization of Echinococcus Granulosusisolates From Egypt

“…Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato (E. granulosus s. l.) larval stage (metacestode) is the causative agent of Cystic Echinococcosis (CE), which is a zoonotic disease considered to be a re-emerging disease in several countries worldwide including Africa and Middle East (1) . CE causes great economic loss in livestock through condemnation of infected organs (mainly liver) and can be responsible for a life-threatening infection in humans (2) .…”