Diphyllobothriidea in the north area of the Andean Patagonia: Epidemiology in urban dogs, morphometrical and molecular identification, with comments on wild carnivores

Abstract

Diphyllobothriidea are the principal agents of Diphyllobothriosis, a widespread food-borne cestodosis. Accurate identification of the species in samples is therefore crucial for diagnosis and epidemiology in wild and domestic animals, and also humans. We aim to identify at specific level the causative agent, and provide an observational, descriptive, and transversal study of the epidemiology of this zoonosis in urban dogs. Also data on wild carnivores from Northwestern Patagonia are presented. Dog feces were collected in thirteen neighborhoods of varying socioeconomic status, and stools were analyzed by two concentration methods. Adult worms were collected and identified by molecular methods. The population of free-roaming dogs in each neighborhood was estimated, and surveys were conducted at all veterinary clinics registered in the Veterinary Medical College of Bariloche city. A total of 36 wild carnivores road killed or found dead in three National Parks were analyzed. Molecular and morphometric analyses of proglottids and eggs from dogs indicate they are infected with D. latum. Twenty out of 118 dog feces were positive for Diphyllobothrium, from 9 out of 13 neighborhoods, with infection values between 10% and 66%. Percentage of infection was correlated positively with the number of free roaming dogs per block, and with Unsatisfied Basic Needs (UBN %), but not with distance to nearest water body. Infection by D. latum in dogs is widely distributed throughout the city. Not all local veterinarians know the occurrence of Diphyllobothriosis in the dogs of the city, and it is evident that this zoonosis is underdiagnosed in relation to the percentage of infection found in this study. None of the analyzed wild carnivores were positive for Diphyllobothrium.