Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2018 Feb;117(2):617-621.
doi: 10.1007/s00436-017-5732-3. Epub 2017 Dec 26.

First detection of Echinococcus multilocularis in Croatia

Relja Beck  1 , Željko Mihaljević  2 , Renata Brezak  3 , Sanja Bosnić  3 , Ivana Lohman Janković  4 , Peter Deplazes  5
Affiliations

First detection of Echinococcus multilocularis in Croatia

Relja Beck et al. Parasitol Res. 2018 Feb.

Abstract

Echinococcus multilocularis has been spreading through Europe but has not yet been reported in Croatia. We report the results of a surveillance programme to detect E. multilocularis in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in different parts of Croatia. PCR-based screening of faecal samples from 238 red foxes in 2015 and 150 in 2016 indicate prevalences of 7.5% in 2015 and 6.6% in 2016 (overall 7.2%, CI 4.9 to 10.3). Positive samples were confirmed by sequencing parts of the nad1 gene and the gene encoding mitochondrial 12S rRNA. Geographic locations of all examined and positive cases were mapped to provide data on the distribution of E. multilocularis. Our results provide the first detection of E. multilocularis in Croatia and extend the southern boundary of this parasite's endemic area.

Keywords: Croatia; Echinococcus multilocularis; Molecular survey; Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes).

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Parasitology. 2002 Jun;124(Pt 6):631-40 - PubMed
    1. Vet Parasitol. 2010 Dec 15;174(3-4):241-6 - PubMed
    1. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2004 Jan;17(1):107-35 - PubMed
    1. Parasitology. 2014 Jun 16;:1-10 - PubMed
    1. Trends Parasitol. 2015 Sep;31(9):407-12 - PubMed

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources