Giardia in shellfish-farming areas: detection in mussels, river water and waste waters.
Giardia cyst contamination of mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis), raw and treated waste waters and water from rivers that flow into four Galician estuaries (NW Spain), where bivalve molluscs are cultured for human consumption, was studied. The high prevalence of contamination in mussels (41.8%, n=184), raw waste water (90.9%, n=11), treated waste water (87.5%, n=16) and in samples of river water (85.7%, n=7), with cyst counts of 9.8-1800.0, 7.0-2541.0 and 1.0-29.3 cysts l(-1), respectively, illustrate the wide distribution of this enteropathogen in the environment and the potential risk to public health associated with the consumption of raw or undercooking bivalves and use of these estuaries for recreational purposes.
Laboratorio de Parasitología, Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, La Coruña, Spain.
Hipólito
H
Gómez-Couso
Fernando
F
Méndez-Hermida
José Antonio
JA
Castro-Hermida
Elvira
E
Ares-Mazás
D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000737:chemistry; D049872:Bivalvia / Q000469:parasitology*; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000469:parasitology*; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000469:parasitology; D016829:Giardia lamblia / Q000254:growth & development*; D005873:Giardiasis / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D005880:Gills / Q000469:parasitology; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D011634:Public Health; D045483:Rivers; D012722:Sewage / Q000469:parasitology*; D013030:Spain
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D012722:Sewage