Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto, Echinococcus ortleppi; and E. intermedius (G7) are present in Bolivia

Abstract

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a zoonotic disease caused by a complex of species known as Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato. CE is endemic in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay and the South part of Brazil. In contrast, little is known regarding the presence of CE in Bolivia. In this study, 35 cysts isolated from livestock (mostly from the Department of La Paz) and 3 from humans (La Paz, Oruro and Potosi) were genetically characterized analysing the sequence of the cox1 gene (1609 bp). In total, 30 cysts (from La Paz, Cochabamba and Beni) were characterized as E. granulosus sensu stricto (3 fertile and 4 non-fertile cysts from sheep, 8 fertile and 12 non-fertile cysts from cattle and 3 fertile cysts from humans). A detailed analysis of the cox1 haplotypes of E. granulosus s.s. is included. Echinococcus ortleppi (G5) was found in 5 fertile cysts from cattle (from La Paz and Cochabamba). Echinococcus intermedius (G7) was identified in 3 fertile cysts from pigs (from Santa Cruz). Additionally, E. granulosus s.s. was detected in 4 dog faecal samples, while E. ortleppi was present in other two dog faecal samples. The implications of these preliminary results in the future implementation of control measures are discussed.

Occurrence of Echinococcusgranulosussensulato and Other Taeniids in Bhutan

“…Unfortunately, the preservation of human cysts in formalin 10% precluded us from amplifying the 1609 bp of the cox1 gene in most of these isolates. The haplotype network shows the cox1 variant called Eg01 in the central position as it has been previously described in Iran, China, Jordan, Peru, Australia, Chile and Bolivia [25][26][27][28]. The central location of this haplotype suggested that this is an ancient variant of the parasite, which was spread worldwide at the time of domestication of livestock as described by Yanagida et al [25].…”

Past and present of cystic echinococcosis in Bolivia

“…granulosus have been used only in 5 publications: Barba [ 68 ] did not find positives in the necropsy of 100 dogs from Santa Cruz; Perez [ 69 ] did not find infections in 60 dogs purged with arecoline; Villena [ 70 ] found adult specimens of E . granulosus in the faeces of 14 out of 85 dogs (16.5%) treated with praziquantel in Tupiza; Subieta [ 71 ] determined a prevalence of 12.3% (45/367) in dogs from Tupiza by necropsy; and finally, Ali and colleagues [ 8 ] described 4.5% (6/131) of the dogs, from the Altiplano of La Paz, to be infected with E . granulosus s .…”

“…The second characterisation of a human CE sample was recently published in a case report of a 3-year-old girl from a rural area near La Paz and El Alto (discussed in the case reports section) [ 25 ]. Finally, Ali and colleagues [ 8 ] reported the presence of E . granulosus s .…”

“…However, the identification of E . intermedius G7 in pigs from Santa Cruz [ 8 ] warrants further investigation in this Department. Previously, Echinococcus vogeli was identified in Santa Cruz infecting Cuniculus paca [ 96 ].…”

The Molecular Epidemiology of Echinococcus Infections

“…Humans may be infected with either species sometimes in mixed infections [ 8 ]. In Bolivia, a recent ME study reported the presence of E. granulosus , E. ortleppi , and E. intermedius in sheep, cattle, and pigs, respectively [ 9 ]. Camels play the dominant role as intermediate host of E. intermedius and to a lesser extent, E. granulosus , in many Middle Eastern regions.…”