Ascaris and Toxocara as foodborne and waterborne pathogens

Bowman, Dwight D.

doi:10.1016/j.rvsc.2020.12.017

Cited by 26 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…The irrigation of vegetables using sewage-contaminated water is a prevalent practice in impoverished nations. This argument (irrigation with contaminated water) is emphasized by the fact that even vegetables cultivated in secure and closed-off regions are susceptible to parasitic contamination via unfiltered or wastewater used for irrigation [ 49 ]. The movement of intestinal parasites from their primary hosts to different vegetables emphasizes the need of implementing in-field hygiene measures to disrupt the parasite life cycle and reduce the possibility of fecal–oral channel transmission [ 7 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the Occurrence of Soil-Transmitted Parasites Contaminating Soil, Vegetables, and Green Fodder in the East of Nile Delta, Egypt

Yahia

Etewa

Hoot

et al. 2023

Journal of Parasitology Research

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Background. Food-borne parasites are major sources of human and animal illness, posing severe health risks in places with contaminated soil, poor water quality, cleanliness, and poor sanitation. The usage of untreated organic fertilizers arising from the excreta of the parasites’ definitive hosts either man or animal pollutes the agricultural soil and is reflected in its products of vegetables and green fodders causing serious health problems. Therefore, to the best of our knowledge, this will be the first study that investigated the combination of parasitic contamination of the agricultural soil and its products of raw eaten vegetables and green fodder in East Nile Delta, Egypt. Aim. The purpose of this study was to investigate the type and degree of contamination caused by parasites in regularly used raw vegetables, green fodder, and soil samples collected from open fields in Egypt’s East Nile Delta. Study Procedures. A cross-sectional study comprised a simple random collection of 400 soil samples, 180 green fodder samples, and as well as 400 vegetable samples, including lettuce, radish, coriander, parsley, dill, watercress, tomatoes, green pepper, cucumber, and carrot, that were gathered throughout one year period from January to December 2021 to represent all seasons (winter, spring, summer, and autumn). The research locations were chosen from various open green fields and farming regions in Egypt’s East Nile Delta producing ready-to-eat vegetables for human consumptions and planting green fodder for animal feeding. Concentrations, including sedimentation, and flotation, and staining techniques were used to recover the greatest number of parasitic life forms. The parasitic structures discovered were identified using biometric and imaging data and compared with known parasite morphology. Statistical analysis was performed with the SPSS software version 22 (IBM, Chicago, IL, USA). Data were presented in numbers and percentages. P -values equal to or less than 0.05 were considered to be statistically significant. The difference in parasitic contamination among the different categories was compared using the chi-square test. Results. In this investigation, 243 out of 400 soil samples (60.7%) confirmed positive for parasitic contamination ( P < 0.05 ). Various parasitic life forms were significantly found in 249 out of 400 (62.25%) of the vegetable samples, with (65.1%) of them harboring one parasite species, whereas 9.2% significantly contained up to three parasites. Ascaris eggs, Trichuris eggs, and Giardia cysts were the most prevalent parasites, which were predominantly isolated from vegetables with uneven surfaces. 109 of 180 (60.0%) green fodder samples confirmed insignificantly positive for parasitic pollution. The proportion of parasite contamination in vegetable samples was insignificant although the highest was in spring (29.3%), followed by summer (27.7%), whereas it is significant in autumn (24.5%). The prevalence rate was the lowest in winter (20.1%). Conclusion and Recommendations. Our findings demonstrated a significant load of parasites notably the soil-transmitted parasitic infection in raw vegetables and green fodder cultivated in open fields as well as in their mother soil in the east of the Nile Delta, Egypt. These results confirm the urgent need to deploy strict control measures to the soil, especially during the pre-harvest period of raw eaten vegetables and green fodder, a critical step in reducing food-borne transmission of soil-transmitted parasites to man and animals.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the Occurrence of Soil-Transmitted Parasites Contaminating Soil, Vegetables, and Green Fodder in the East of Nile Delta, Egypt

Yahia

Etewa

Hoot

et al. 2023

Journal of Parasitology Research

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“…The cultivation practices used to produce these vegetables was not specified, but even if they were grown within secure areas closed-off to the outside, one must also be open to the potential for contamination of vegetables with Toxocara spp. eggs via unfiltered or wastewater used for irrigation ( Bowman, 2021 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

First report demonstrating the presence of Toxocara spp. eggs on vegetables grown in community gardens in Europe

Healy

Morgan

Prada

et al. 2022

Food and Waterborne Parasitology

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“…Toxocara larvae are able to persist in the tissues of paratenic hosts, thus infected meat can act as a source of infection to humans (Strube et al, 2013;Wu and Bowman, 2020), particularly if consumed undercooked (Fan et al, 2015). A recently published review by Bowman (2021) discusses vegetable contamination with both Ascaris spp. and Toxocara spp.…”

Section: Toxocariasis and Food Safetymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…and Toxocara spp. eggs (Bowman, 2021), but given that Toxocara, unlike Ascaris, cannot be transmitted by humans and has the potential to contaminate meat as well as vegetable produce, the epidemiology of this parasite warrants individual attention.…”

Section: Toxocariasis and Food Safetymentioning

confidence: 99%

Brain food: rethinking food-borne toxocariasis

et al. 2021

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Human toxocariasis is a neglected tropical disease, which is actually global in distribution and has a significant impact on global public health. The infection can lead to several serious conditions in humans, including allergic, ophthalmic and neurological disorders such as epilepsy. It is caused by the common roundworm species Toxocara canis and Toxocara cati, with humans becoming accidentally infected via the ingestion of eggs or larvae. Toxocara eggs are deposited on the ground when infected dogs, cats and foxes defecate, with the eggs contaminating crops, grazing pastures, and subsequently food animals. However, transmission of Toxocara to humans via food consumption has received relatively little attention in the literature. To establish the risks that contaminated food poses to the public, a renewed research focus is required. This review discusses what is currently known about food-borne Toxocara transmission, highlighting the gaps in our understanding that require further attention, and outlining some potential preventative strategies which could be employed to safeguard consumer health.

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Ascaris and Toxocara as foodborne and waterborne pathogens

Cited by 26 publications

References 36 publications

Investigating the Occurrence of Soil-Transmitted Parasites Contaminating Soil, Vegetables, and Green Fodder in the East of Nile Delta, Egypt

Investigating the Occurrence of Soil-Transmitted Parasites Contaminating Soil, Vegetables, and Green Fodder in the East of Nile Delta, Egypt

First report demonstrating the presence of Toxocara spp. eggs on vegetables grown in community gardens in Europe

Brain food: rethinking food-borne toxocariasis

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