First report of Trichinella pseudospiralis in Poland, in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes)

Abstract

Nematode worms of the genus Trichinella are one of the most widespread zoonotic pathogens. Natural transmission between hosts can only occur through the ingestion of infected meat. To date, two Trichinella species are known to be etiological agents of disease among domestic animals and wildlife in Poland: T. spiralis and T. britovi. In the last decades, since the administration of an oral vaccination against rabies, the red fox population in Poland has increased exponentially. The study area covers the Nowy Targ region: a mountainous area (585-1138 m above the sea) in southern Poland. Of 24 red foxes examined in the study, four were infected with Trichinella isolates: three were identified as T. britovi and one as T. pseudospiralis. The muscle of red foxes infected with T. britovi harboured 2.75, 3.11, 4.4 LPG and with T. pseudospiralis 0.36 LPG. Trichinella larvae were identified at species level by genomic and mitochondrial multiplex PCR, the products of which were sequenced for comparison with other sequences available in GenBank. The sequences obtained from the Polish T. pseudospiralis isolate, deposited in GenBank under the accession numbers JQ809660.1 and JQ809661.1, matched sequences already published in GenBank. Sequence comparison showed a 100% match with the large subunit ribosomal RNA gene of T. pseudospiralis isolate ISS 013, and a 96-95% match with those of T. pseudospiralis isolates ISS 141 and ISS 470. This is the first report of the identification of T. pseudospiralis larvae from red fox in Poland.

First record of wild boar infected with Trichinella pseudospiralis in Poland

“…As for now, in Poland T. pseudospiralis was found only once in red fox in 2012 in the Subcarpathian Province (14), 600 km away from the shooting place of the infected wild boar described in this paper. This species is not common among such vectors as red fox.…”

“…In Europe, cases of T. pseudospiralis infection in wild boar were previously detected in Finland (17), France (24), Sweden (22), Germany (16), Italy (13), and Hungary (28). This species has been also detected in other mammals, such as red foxes, raccoon dogs, brown rat, and lynx (3,12,14,22). T. pseudospiralis can also infect birds; the European cases include: Common buzzard (Buteo buteo) (4), rook (Corvus frugilegus) (27), tawny owl (Strix aluco), and little owl (Athene noctua) (21).…”

“…Till now, two species of Trichinella were detected in Polish wild boar population: T. spiralis and T. britovi (2). T. pseudospiralis was reported once in the red fox (14), but up to now it has never been detected in wild boars. This non-encapsulated species is very difficult to detect using the compressor method.…”

Prevalence of Trichinella britovi in muscle tissue samples from foxes from Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Poland

“…Other studies have revealed the presence of T. spiralis and T. britovi in wild carnivores and omnivores, such as badgers, martens and raccoons. A case of a fox infected with T. pseudospiralis has also been reported in Poland (17).…”

Ocular system involvement in the course of human trichinellosis. Pathological and diagnostic aspects

“…2009). The first report of T. pseudospiralis in one red fox (Vulpes vulpes) in district of Nowy Targ in Poland (Moskwa et al 2013) -is very important and uncommon finding from parasitological and epidemiological point of view; in group of 24 examined red foxes, the next three animals were infected with T. britovi. In 2010 the findings T. nativa in three red foxes In German (Güstrow district and Heidenheim district) and in Poland (Kętrzyn district) is a great epidemiological importance (Chmurzyńska et al 2011).…”