Evidence of the Zoonotic Transmission of <i>Cryptosporidium</i> among Children and Pets
Natalia Marinho Dourado Coelho,
Willian Marinho Dourado Coelho,
Jancarlo Ferreira Gomes,
Marcelo Vasconcelos Meireles,
Walter Bertequini Nagata,
Valéria Marçal Felix de Lima,
Thais Rabelo Santos-Doni,
Vitória Beatriz Silva,
Luiz da Silveira Neto,
Alex Akira Nakamura,
Katia Denise Saraiva Bresciani
Affiliations
Natalia Marinho Dourado Coelho
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Willian Marinho Dourado Coelho
Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias, Fundação Educacional de Andradina, Andradina 16901-160, São Paulo, Brazil
Jancarlo Ferreira Gomes
Faculdade de Ciências Médicas e Instituto de Computação, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas 13083-887, São Paulo, Brazil
Marcelo Vasconcelos Meireles
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Walter Bertequini Nagata
Escritório de Defesa Agropecuária, Coordenadoria de Defesa Agropecuária, Secretaria de Agricultura e Abastecimento do Estado de São Paulo, Lins 16400-050, São Paulo, Brazil
Valéria Marçal Felix de Lima
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Thais Rabelo Santos-Doni
Instituto de Ciências Agrárias, Universidade Federal do Vale do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri (UFVJM), Unaí 38610-000, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Vitória Beatriz Silva
Imunologia e Vacinologia, Curso de Engenharia de Bioprocessos e Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Tocantins (UFT), Gurupi 77410-530, Tocantins, Brazil
Luiz da Silveira Neto
Imunologia e Vacinologia, Curso de Engenharia de Bioprocessos e Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Tocantins (UFT), Gurupi 77410-530, Tocantins, Brazil
Alex Akira Nakamura
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
Katia Denise Saraiva Bresciani
Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), Araçatuba 16050-680, São Paulo, Brazil
We investigated the zoonotic transmission of Cryptosporidium among the children (n = 188), dogs (n = 133), and cats (n = 55) living in 188 households. Fecal samples were examined using ELISA and confirmed via nested PCR. Coproantigens oocysts were detected in 3.7% of children, 8.3% of dogs, and 5.5% of cats. We found strong evidence of two cases of the zoonotic transmission of Cryptosporidium canis between children and dogs. Furthermore, four children and their respective pets (one dog and three cats) were infected with Cryptosporidium parvum, but we cannot exclude the hypotheses that the oocysts were transmitted from children to animals or that both hosts were infected by a shared source, such as contaminated water or food. The presence of an infected animal elevated the risk of zoonotic transmission by 129.7-fold (95% CI: 13.92–1209.68). Furthermore, sharing a bed with pets was identified as a risk factor for infection in children (OR: 9.9, 95% CI: 1.37–71.2). In conclusion, the zoonotic transmission of Cryptosporidium among children and pets cohabiting in the same household may be quite common, especially when infected animals lie or sleep on children’s beds. These findings unequivocally highlight the public health concern surrounding C. canis.
