First report of Trichinella pseudospiralis in a wolf (Canis lupus italicus)

Within the genus Trichinella, Trichinella pseudospiralis is the only recognized non-encapsulated species known to infect mammals and birds. In October 2020, larvae recovered from muscle tissues of a wolf (Canis lupus italicus) originating from Molise Region, Central Italy, were molecularly confirmed...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife
Main Authors: Luciano Ricchiuti, Antonio Petrini, Maria Interisano, Addolorato Ruberto, Stefania Salucci, Lucio Marino, Angela Del Riccio, Antonio Cocco, Pietro Badagliacca, Edoardo Pozio
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2021
Subjects:
Trichinella pseudospiralis
Trichinella britovi
Wolf
Italy
Epidemiology
Diagnosis
Zoology
QL1-991
Canis lupus
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijppaw.2021.05.002
https://doaj.org/article/4e71828b77a44c61b44f0164625a1ebe
Description
Summary:Within the genus Trichinella, Trichinella pseudospiralis is the only recognized non-encapsulated species known to infect mammals and birds. In October 2020, larvae recovered from muscle tissues of a wolf (Canis lupus italicus) originating from Molise Region, Central Italy, were molecularly confirmed as those of Trichinella britovi and T. pseudospiralis. This is the first detection of T. pseudospiralis from a wolf. In Italy, this zoonotic nematode was detected in a red fox (Vulpes vulpes), three birds (Strix aluco, Athene noctua, Milvus milvus) and five wild boars (Sus scrofa), and was also identified as the etiological agent of a human outbreak of trichinellosis in 2015. Since T. pseudospiralis is rarely reported from carnivore mammals in comparison to the encapsulated species frequently detected in these hosts, this finding opens the question of the role of carnivores as reservoirs for this parasite.

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