Serosurvey and molecular detection of the main zoonotic parasites carried by commensal population in Tehran, Iran.

BACKGROUND

are reservoirs for transmission of various zoonotic parasites, and they have become a threat to public health worldwide. Given the large number and the significant presence of throughout the city of Tehran, this study aims to assess the frequency of zoonotic parasites carried by commensal rodents wandering in Tehran, Iran. The study considered the north, south, west, east, and center regions of Tehran for the purposes of this study. The serological tests were applied in order to detect effective antibodies against (), spp., and spp. using a commercial qualitative rat ELISA kit. The frequency of () was surveyed by using the conventional PCR method. Furthermore, nested PCR was employed to detect the presence of spp. and spp. in commensal dispersed in Tehran.

RESULTS

Approximately, 76% of the 100 tested were infected with at least one zoonotic parasite, indicating the significant frequency of parasites within the study areas. Seroreactivity against , spp., and spp. was detected in 5%, 0%, and 1% of the tested, respectively. DNA was detected in 32 out of 100 (32%) . In addition, spp. and spp. DNA were found in 18 out of 100 (18%) and 76 out of 100 (76%) investigated, respectively. with 15% and with 70% had the highest frequency of parasites among the collected from the western and northeastern regions of Tehran, respectively. Moreover, spp. with 95% and spp. with 30% had the highest frequency in the east and center districts, respectively.

CONCLUSION

The findings showed a wide geographical dissemination of spp., , and spp. in within five districts of Tehran. In contrast, other parasites such as spp. infection were rarely detected in populations. No evidence for the circulation of spp. was found in this study.