SummaryThe genus Trichinella is widespread in all continents but Antarctica. The only way to identify the species/genotypes is through molecular analyses. In Chile, only one study has reported Trichinella larvae in a cougar, but the species of Trichinella was not identifi ed. In this work, the fi nding of Trichinella larvae in a cougar, together with their genotypic identifi cation, is the fi rst documentation of such in Chile. The cougar was found run over by a vehicle in the Biobío Region. Larvae were isolated following artifi cial digestion of the diaphragm and analyzed by means of multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A PCR product of 173 base pairs allowed for the classifi cation of the larvae as T. spiralis. It is the fi rst record of the species in Chilean wildlife. This fi nding in Chile is interesting in terms of human health, suggesting a possible role of the cougar as a reservoir for this parasite

The prospective role of the land snail Rumina decollata as a potential paratenic host of Toxocara cati for domestic cats was studied. R. decollata specimens and cats' feces were collected from the open spaces of a Buenos Aires city hospital. Cats' feces were analyzed and snails were digested to identify T. cati stages, by morphological and molecular analyses. T. cati larval eggs were recovered from 23.5% (4/17) of the sampled feces. Twenty percent of snail pools (5/25) were confirmed to be positive for Toxocara spp. third larval stage (L3) by PCR. The mean value of total larvae recovered per gram of snail in all positive pools was 5.1, with a maximum 33 L3/pool. This is the first report of T. cati infective larvae in R. decollata domestic snail as a paratenic host, since the relationship between infection in snails and in cats' feces could be demonstrated in a common environment.

Twenty four specimens of seven species belonging to the families Felidae, Mustelidae, and Canidae were obtained in Lanín and Nahuel Huapi National Parks from March 1996 to April 2016. Specimens were processed by necropsy in order to contribute to the knowledge of toxocariasis in wild carnivores of Argentinean Patagonia. The only Puma concolor and the seven Leopardus geoffroyi were positive for Toxocara cati. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) of the ITS-1 region from larval and adult DNA was carried out to confirm parasite species identification. This is the first molecular determination of T. cati from wild felids in Argentina and the study also fill gaps about the spatial distribution and hosts for Toxocara cati.