title: Molecular study for detecting the prevalence of Fasciola gigantica in field-collected snails of Radix gedrosiana (Pulmonata: Lymnaeidae) in northwestern Iran.
abstract: Fasciolosis is an important disease in veterinary medicine worldwide, and is a cause of great economic loss in livestock husbandry in Iran. This study was aimed to determine prevalence of Fasciola gigantica infection in field-collected snails of Radix gedrosiana in northwestern Iran. The snails were collected from 28 perennial and seasonal freshwater habitats from May to December 2010 and identified. A fragment of 618 bp of 28s rRNA gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The PCR products were subjected to restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) using DraII and AvaII enzymes. PCR-RFLP patterns revealed that 3.12% of the snails were infected with F. gigantica. It was also found that the infected snails had a limited distribution over the water bodies located in the central part of the region. It was concluded that PCR-RFLP was a reliable approach to detect Fasciola infection in pond snails and may be useful to establish control measures for livestock and humans' fasciolosis in the region.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathobiology, Parasitology Division, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Nazlu Campus, Urmia University, Urmia City, Iran.
authors.forename: Abbas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Imani-Baran
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yakhchali
authors.forename: Reza
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Malekzadeh Viayeh
authors.forename: Razieh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Paktarmani
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005209:Fasciola / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000502:physiology*; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D015801:Helminth Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D007492:Iran; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D012908:Snails / Q000469:parasitology*
chemical_list: D015801:Helminth Proteins