Babesia bovis and Babesia bigemina are distributed all over the world; the etiologic agents of the animal babesiosis are considered the most important tick-borne disease. The present research work was the first attempt to determine the prevalence of B. bovis and B. bigemina infection in ticks, in Egypt, by using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Questing 5,243 hard and soft ticks were collected from different localities throughout the Giza Governorate. Furthermore, DNA from 500 different individual tick species was extracted and PCR was performed. Primers verified from the sequence of Mexico strain of both species were used. Two fragments of 275 and 175 bp of B. bovis and B. bigemina, respectively, were generated. Fragments of the pathogens were recovered with PCR and sequenced. The prevalence of B. bovis and B. bigemina in Boophilus annulatus ticks were 55% and 66%, respectively. Also, presence of 12% dual infection with B. bovis and B. bigemina was observed. Sequence analysis of PCR product of these pathogens shares a high degree of similarity in sequence compared to similar species found in GenBank.
The problem of parasitic contamination of food, especially fresh vegetables, is not limited to personal hygiene during food preparation but is also widely dependent on the source of the food and the handling it undergoes before it gets to the consumer. The objective of the present study was to evaluate parasitic contamination in eight common raw vegetables in Tabuk, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A total of 400 samples of raw vegetables obtained from wholesale and retail markets were examined for helminth eggs and larvae and for cysts of different parasites, using standard methods. The prevalence of the parasites was 20.65% in cucumber, 15.76% in cabbage, 14.67% in pea, 14.13% in cress, 13.04% in lettuce, 10.33% in carrot, 8.70% in green onion, and 2.72% in tomato. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference (P < 0.05) for Entamoeba spp. cysts, Ascaris lumbricoides eggs, Entamoeba coli cysts, and unknown isolated parasite cysts. Parasites are common in vegetables that are frequently eaten raw and, for this reason, may pose a health risk for consumers in Tabuk.
Some aquatic insects and invertebrates were used for monitoring the effect of bacteriological pollution upon water quality during two years (October, 2001-August, 2003 at six sampling sites situated at El-Zomor and El-Mariotya canals (branches from the River Nile), Giza Governorate, Egypt. Results obtained revealed that 5 species of bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus faecium & Proteus mirabilis) were detected from water samples. K. pneumonia, S. faecium and P. mirabilis were not detected at IIIZ site and; S. faecium was not detected at IIZ sampling site. Meanwhile only two species (E. coli & E. faecalis) were detected in all El-Mariotya canal sampling sites. E. coli & E. faecalis showed high bacterial counts during summer months. The bacterial species isolated from aquatic insects belong to different orders mainly Diptera; Ephemeroptera and Odonata; however, there is no isolation of bacteria from aquatic invertebrate belonging to orders Cladocera & Cyclopoida. The 5 bacterial species that were detected in the water samples were isolated from the collected aquatic insects at IZ sampling site, while at IIZ sampling site 4 species (E. coli, K. pneumonia, E. faecalis & P. mirabilis) and only two species (E. coli & E. faecalis) at IIIZ sampling site. However, only 2 species of bacteria (E. coli & E. faecalis) were isolated from El-Mariotya canal. It is clear that some aquatic stages of Diptera, Ephemeroptera and Odonata could be selected as bioindicator of water bacterial pollution.
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