title: Hydatidosis in camels (Camelus dromedarius) and their potential role in the epidemiology of Echinococcus granulosus in Iran.
abstract: Hydatid cysts were recovered from 35.2% (233/661) of camels (Camelus dromedarius) slaughtered in five different regions of Iran. The degree of prevalence between males (34.4%) and females (36.6%) was not statistically significant. The highest rate of infection (59.3%) was found in the Isfahan region (in the central part of Iran) while the lowest (25.7%) was found in Kerman province. The organ distribution of cysts was 49.4% in lungs alone, 30.0% in both liver and lungs, 14.6% in liver only and 6.0% in other organs. Therefore, the lungs were the predominant sites of the hydatid cyst. The range in the number of cysts was 1-48 in infected animals. The majority of the camels had 1-5 cysts, with 21.9%, 11.6% and 5.6% of infected camels having 6-10, 11-20 and 21 or more cysts respectively. There was a direct relationship between the rate and intensity of infection and host age. The fertility rate of lung cysts (69.7%) was higher than that of liver cysts (58.7%) and other organs (50.0%) whilst the viability rate of protoscoleces of liver fertile cysts (80.3%) was significantly higher than that of lung cysts (55.8%) and other organs (57.1%). The role of camels in the epidemiology of Echinococcus granulosus in Iran is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Parasitology and Mycology Department, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. nayebalia@yahoo.com
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Ahmadi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002162:Camelus / Q000469:parasitology*; D004443:Echinococcosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D004444:Echinococcosis, Hepatic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary; D004445:Echinococcosis, Pulmonary / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary; D048209:Echinococcus granulosus / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005260:Female; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012737:Sex Factors