Prevalence and Molecular Characterization of Cystic Echinococcosis in Livestock in the Hazara Division, Pakistan

Overview

Journal Front Vet Sci

Specialty Veterinary Medicine

Date 2025 Mar 11

PMID 40066194

Authors

Safia Arbab

Hanif Ullah

Inam Ul Hassan

Suleman

Weiwei Wang

Abdul Qadeer

Jiya Zhang

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Introduction: Echinococcosis is a parasitic zoonotic disease caused by tapeworm larvae, forming cysts in organs like the liver and lungs. It primarily affects livestock and humans, with significant public health and economic implications worldwide. In the Hazara Division, the prevalence and genetic diversity of the is largely unexplored. Therefore, the current study aims to assess the prevalence o (EG) in livestock.

Materials And Methods: From April 2023 to April 2024, a total of 480 livestock animals, including buffaloes, cattle, goats, and sheep, were examined for echinococcosis across various slaughterhouses in the Hazara Division. Cysts of were collected from different organs, and the cyst fluid (CF) was microscopically analyzed before DNA extraction. PCR amplification was performed targeting the Cox1 (317 bp) and Cyto B (309 bp) genes to confirm the presence of .

Results: The overall prevalence of Cystic echinococcosis (CE) was 12.2% (59/480), with rates observed in different species as follows: cattle (13.1%), buffaloes (15.2%), goats (6.3%), and sheep (5.7%), (-0.658). District-wise, higher prevalence rates were recorded in Haripur and Mansehra districts (17.5% and 16.2%), followed by Abbottabad and Battagram (12.5% and 11.2%). The lowest prevalence of infection was observed in the upper and lower Kohistan districts, with rates ranging from (8.7% and 7.5%), respectively. The infection was more common in male animals than in females, particularly among those older than 4-5 years ( =0.048). Sex-wise prevalence varied across species, with cattle showing rates of 12.4% in males and 14.3% in females. In buffaloes, prevalence was 20% in males and 13.3% in females, followed by sheep at 5% in males and 6.2% in females, and goats at 8% in males. Most animals in the study were older than three years, with the highest number of cysts found in animals over five years of age. Hydatid cysts were most found in the liver (39.1%) and lungs (34.7%), followed by the kidneys (17.3%) and heart (8.6%), (-0.01).

Conclusion: In conclusion, E.G. is highly prevalent in the livestock population of the Hazara division.

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