Department of Parasitology, University of Hohenheim, Emil-Wolff-Str. 34, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany.
Int J Parasitol. 2009 Sep;39(11):1269-76. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2009.02.015. Epub 2009 Mar 9.
We examined 71 faecal samples of carnivores from Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP), Uganda, for eggs of Echinococcus species. Thirty-nine faecal samples contained taeniid eggs. For species diagnosis, DNA was isolated from a total of 1984 individual taeniid eggs. To differentiate eggs of Echinococcus felidis from other taeniid taxa (including the closely related Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto), a restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP)-PCR of the mitochondrial nad1 gene was developed. As the faecal samples were taken from the environment, the host species was determined for all samples, except for one, by RFLP-PCR of the cob gene. Seven hundred and ninety-one of the 1984 eggs yielded a suitable PCR product. E. felidis was present in 34 of 47 samples from lions, none of 18 samples from leopards, and one of five samples from spotted hyenas. No Echinococcus taxon other than E. felidis was found, but three samples from lions contained eggs of Taenia regis. Two hydatid cysts of warthog origin from QENP were available for this study; molecular examination showed that one belonged to E. felidis, the other to E. granulosus (G1 strain). As a comparison of methods demonstrated that molecular diagnostic tools used for previous surveys of Echinococcus isolates in eastern Africa are not suitable to discriminate between E. felidis and E. granulosus sensu stricto, we re-examined 412 hydatid cyst samples of human, sheep, cattle, camel and goat origin from Kenya. Previous results were confirmed, as E. granulosus sensu stricto and Echinococcus canadensis G6/7 strain, but no E. felidis was found among these samples. In conclusion, we provide evidence that E. felidis is a frequent parasite of lions in Uganda, and possibly also occurs in hyenas. Additionally, we show that warthogs interact as intermediate hosts for E. felidis. We did not find evidence that E. felidis is present in eastern Africa outside conservation areas.
我们检查了来自乌干达伊丽莎白女王国家公园（QENP）的 71 份肉食性动物粪便样本，以检测棘球蚴属物种的卵。39 份粪便样本中含有带绦虫卵。为了进行物种诊断，我们从总共 1984 个个体带绦虫卵中分离出 DNA。为了将 Echinococcus felidis 的卵与其他带绦虫类群（包括密切相关的 Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto）区分开来，我们开发了线粒体 nad1 基因的限制性片段长度多态性（RFLP）-PCR。由于粪便样本是从环境中采集的，除了一份样本外，我们通过 cob 基因的 RFLP-PCR 确定了所有样本的宿主物种。在 1984 个卵中，有 791 个产生了合适的 PCR 产物。E. felidis 存在于 47 份狮子粪便样本中的 34 份中，18 份豹粪便样本中均未发现，5 份斑点鬣狗粪便样本中仅发现 1 份。除了 E. felidis 外，没有发现其他棘球蚴属物种，但来自狮子的 3 份样本中含有 Taenia regis 的卵。来自 QENP 的 2 个疣猪来源的包虫囊肿可用于本研究；分子检测表明，其中一个属于 E. felidis，另一个属于 E. granulosus（G1 株）。作为方法比较的结果表明，用于东非棘球蚴分离株先前调查的分子诊断工具不适合区分 E. felidis 和 E. granulosus sensu stricto，我们重新检查了来自肯尼亚的 412 份人类、绵羊、牛、骆驼和山羊来源的包虫囊肿样本。先前的结果得到了证实，即 E. granulosus sensu stricto 和 Echinococcus canadensis G6/7 株，但在这些样本中未发现 E. felidis。总之，我们提供的证据表明 E. felidis 是乌干达狮子的常见寄生虫，也可能存在于鬣狗中。此外，我们表明疣猪是 E. felidis 的中间宿主。我们没有发现证据表明 E. felidis 存在于东非保护区以外的地区。
