Gastrointestinal Parasites of Dogs in Egypt: An Update on the Prevalence in Dakahlia Governorate and a Meta-Analysis for the Published Data from the Country

Abstract

Since the last survey on gastrointestinal (GIT) parasites infecting dogs in Dakahlia governorate, Egypt, was published 40 years ago, the present study detected various GIT parasites in feces of 78 stray dogs in this governorate. Twenty-one dogs (35.9%) had eggs/oocysts of eight different parasites including Toxocara canis (19.2%), Toxascaris leonina (2.6%), hookworms (1.3%), Taenia species (5.1%), Dipylidium caninum (2.6%), Cystoisospora canis (5.1%), Cystoisospora ohioensis (2.6%), and Neospora caninum-like oocysts (1.3%). These results were combined in various meta-analyses with findings of all published surveys on GIT parasites of dogs in Egypt to underline the potential parasitic zoonoses from dogs in the country. Feces and/or gastrointestinal tracts of 19,807 dogs from various Egyptian governorates, but particularly Cairo, have been microscopically tested in 182 datasets published between 1938 and 2022, revealed during our systematic database search. Toxocara canis, interestingly, displayed a twofold higher pooled prevalence (24.7%) when compared to the published global pooled prevalence for T. canis, indicating that dogs represent a major risk for toxocariasis in humans from Egypt. Dipylidium caninum (25.4%) as well as various Taenia species (17.1%) also displayed high pooled prevalences. On the contrary, lower pooled prevalence was estimated for the most important zoonotic taeniid “Echinococcus granulosus” (2.4%) as well as for hookworms (1.8%) in comparison to what has been published from other countries in the region. Relatively high prevalences were estimated for three protozoa detected in dogs and are common to infect children in Egypt; Cryptosporidium (5.5%), Giardia (7.4%), and Entamoeba histolytica (9.8%). In general, the pooled prevalence estimated for various parasites detected in dogs from Egypt has decreased in the recent years, sometimes by as much as one-fifth, but this great decline is statistically insignificant, which should alert the veterinary and public health authorities to continue their efforts for controlling these parasites in a “One Health” approach.

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum and Trichinella spp. in Pigs from Cairo, Egypt

“…The presence of T. gondii -like oocysts in the feces of cats in Egypt may have been overestimated, where 1432 cats were examined, revealing a pooled prevalence of 11.9% [ 64 ]. Neospora caninum -like oocysts were found in the feces of one of 78 dogs tested in a single study (Dakahlia governorate), and it is conceivable that certain small-sized oocysts detected in prior studies from Egypt are N. caninum [ 65 ]. Furthermore, N. caninum -like oocysts were found in the feces of five of nine puppies fed the placentas and brains of nine aborted bovine fetuses in Egypt [ 66 ].…”

Prevalence and first molecular identification of Sarcocystis species in feces of domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) in Egypt

“…Likewise, the estimate prevalence of dog sarcocystosis varies from 2.2 to 9% according to the worldwide reports [ 22 – 24 ]. Also, Abbas et al, [ 25 ] found that Sarcocystis oocysts were detected in 29 fecal samples from 1126 dogs with a very low pooled prevalence (2.0%) in Egypt, while El Menyawe and Abdel Rahman [ 26 ], and Sabry and Lotfy [ 27 ], depicted that the overall prevalence of dog sarcocystosis in Cairo and Giza governorates was 1.8% and 14.8%, respectively. In a recent study, a very low prevalence (0.3%) was recorded in dogs from Calgary, Canada [ 28 ].…”

Molecular identification and phylogenetic confirmation of Sarcocystis species in slaughtered camels in Al-Najif province, Iraq

“…Sarcocystis , first reported in 1843, is a genus of intracellular protozoan parasite which belongs to Sarcocystidae family, Eucoccidiorina order of Apicomplexa phylum. Worldwide, considerable production losses and health illness in animals have been recognized due to the presence of >200 species in the genus of Sarcocystis that infects a wide array of domestic and wild animals ( Dubey et al ., 2015a ; Abbas et al ., 2023 ). The life cycle of a parasite involves two hosts; definitive (predator) and intermediate (prey) hosts.…”