title: European mustelids occupying pristine wetlands in the Danube Delta are infected with Trichinella likely derived from domesticated swine.
abstract: Abstract We analyzed 32 specimens from nine species of Mustelidae for Trichinella; six infections from two Trichinella species were observed from three host species. This provides documentation of Trichinella in Mustela erminea and Martes foina in Romania and Trichinella spiralis in a mustelid host from Europe. Trichinella spiralis continues to be a public challenge characterized by a wide host range and geographical distribution ( Pozio 2007 ). During the past 20 yr, Romania has had the most reported human cases of trichinellosis in the world ( Blaga et al. 2007 ). Transmission occurs among domesticated swine, rats, and wild mammals that feed by scavenging or predation ( Pozio 2000 ). Trichinella transmission to humans may occur by consumption of meat of livestock infected after exposure to wildlife ( Pozio et al. 2009 ).
authors.affiliation: 1  Department of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases, University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Calea Mănăştur 3-5, Cluj-Napoca 400372, Romania.
authors.forename: Miruna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oltean
authors.forename: Zsuzsa
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Kalmár
authors.forename: Botond J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Kiss
authors.forename: Mihai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marinov
authors.forename: Alexe
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vasile
authors.forename: Attila D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Sándor
authors.forename: Cristian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Domşa
authors.forename: Călin M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Gherman
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boireau
authors.forename: Vasile
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cozma
authors.forename: Andrei D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Mihalca
authors.forename: Benjamin M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Rosenthal
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D045969:Mustelidae; D014234:Trichinella / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014235:Trichinellosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D053833:Wetlands