title: Detection of Gnathostoma spinigerum third-stage larvae in snakeheads purchased from a central part of Myanmar.
abstract: To examine the infection status of freshwater fish with Gnathostoma spp. larvae in Myanmar, we purchased 15 snakeheads, Channa striatus, from a local market in a suburban area of Naypyidaw, the new capital city. Two larval gnathostomes were collected using an artificial digestion technique, and observed by a light microscope and a scanning electron microscope. The size of an intact larva was 2.65 mm long and 0.32 mm wide. The characteristic morphology of the larvae included the presence of a long esophagus (0.80 mm long), 2 pairs of cervical sacs (0.43 mm long), and a characteristic head bulb with 4 rows of hooklets. The number of hooklets in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th row was 45, 48, 50, and 52, respectively. Based on these morphological characters, the larvae were identified as the advanced 3rd-stage larvae of Gnathostoma spinigerum. This is the first report of detection of G. spinigerum 3rd-stage larvae in the central part of Myanmar. Our study suggests that intake of raw meat of snakehead fish in Myanmar may result in human gnathostomiasis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, and Institute of Endemic Diseases, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul 110-799, Korea.
authors.forename: Bong-Kwang
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Jin-Ju
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Kyoung-Ho
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Pyo
authors.forename: Hyeong-Jin
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Hoo-Gn
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.forename: Cheong-Ha
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.forename: Soon-Hyung
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Eun-Hee
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Jong-Yil
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Chai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005393:Fish Diseases / Q000469:parasitology; D006039:Gnathostoma / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D007814:Larva / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002052:Myanmar; D010473:Perciformes / Q000469:parasitology*; D017205:Spirurida Infections / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*