Toxoplasma gondii in a Remote Subsistence Hunting-Based Indigenous Community of the Peruvian Amazon
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Author
Menajovsky, María Fernanda
Espunyes, Johan
Ulloa, Gabriela
Calderon, Maritza
Diestra, Andrea
Malaga, Edith
Muñoz, Carmen
Montero, Stephanie
Lescano, Andres G.
Santolalla, Meddly L.
Mayor, Pedro
Publication date
2024-04-26ISSN
2414-6366
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous zoonotic protozoan parasite that infects a wide variety
range of warm-blooded animals. This study describes the epidemiological scenario of T. gondii in
an indigenous community that relies on subsistence hunting in a well-conserved and isolated area
of the Peruvian Amazon. The high seropositivity against T. gondii in humans (83.3% IgG and 6.1%
IgM), wild mammals (30.45%, 17 species), peri-domestic rodents (10.0% Rattus sp.), and domestic
animals (94.1% dogs and 100% cats) indicates the existence of a sylvatic cycle in the community under
study. Individual age was found to be positively associated with IgG detection against T. gondii
but not with IgM. It is estimated that each family consumed 5.67 infected animals per year with
terrestrial species having higher infective rates than arboreal species. The main risk factors included
improper handling and cooking of wild meat, poor hygiene practices, and feeding uncooked offal to
domestic animals. This scenario results in a continuous process of infection and reinfection within
the indigenous community with cats, dogs, and peri-domestic animals becoming infected through
the ingestion of infected raw viscera. Our results emphasize the need to promote safe food handling
practices and disposal of waste materials from hunted animals in such communities.
Document Type
Article
Document version
Published version
Language
English
Subject (CDU)
619 - Veterinary science
Pages
13
Publisher
MDPI
Is part of
Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
Citation
Menajovsky, María Fernanda, Johan Espunyes, Gabriela Ulloa, Maritza Calderon, Andrea Diestra, Edith Malaga, Carmen Muñoz, Stephanie Montero, Andres G. Lescano, Meddly L. Santolalla, et al. 2024. “Toxoplasma gondii in a Remote Subsistence Hunting-Based Indigenous Community of the Peruvian Amazon”. Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease. 9 (5): 98. doi: 10.3390/tropicalmed9050098
Grant agreement number
EC/FP7/609484/EU/Network of the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Countries on Joint Innovation and Research Activities/ERANet-LAC
ISCIII/ /AC18-00054/ES/Diagnóstico y vigilancia de los virus y hemoparásitos transmitidos por vectores en la interfaz hombre-vida silvestre en la Cuenca Amazónica/
Program
Sanitat Animal
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- ARTICLES CIENTÍFICS [2631]
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Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/