Revista Brasileira de Parasitologia Veterinária (Jul 2020)

First report of detection of Toxoplasma gondii DNA in oysters (Crassostrea sp.) in the state of Maranhão

  • Camila Moraes Silva,
  • Anna Letícia Pinto Silva,
  • Karinne Francisca Cardoso Watanabe,
  • Nancyleni Pinto Chaves Bezerra,
  • Danilo Cutrim Bezerra,
  • Hugo Moreira Gomes,
  • Thais Brito Freire,
  • Larissa Sarmento dos Santos,
  • Alcina Vieira de Carvalho Neta,
  • Ellainy Maria Conceição Silva,
  • Viviane Correia Silva Coimbra

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1590/s1984-29612020050
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 29, no. 3

Abstract

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Abstract The aim of this study was to report on detection of Toxoplasma gondii DNA in oysters (Crassostrea sp.) in the state of Maranhão. To conduct this study, 200 farmed oysters were acquired in the municipality of Raposa and 100 in Paço do Lumiar; and a further 100 oysters were taken from the natural stock in the municipality of Primeira Cruz. This total of 400 specimens sampled was divided into 80 pools composed of five animals each. The gills and visceral mass of each oyster were removed for DNA extraction (per pool of oysters), using a commercial kit. The nested PCR technique (with the primer SAG-1) was then used to investigate any presence of protozoa. This molecular technique demonstrated the presence of DNA of T. gondii in 2.5% of the pools of oysters (n = 2/80): these oysters were exclusively from farms. The results from this study allow the conclusion that oysters of the genus Crassostrea that are farmed in the state of Maranhão are capable of filtering oocysts of T. gondii and maintaining them in their tissues. They are therefore potential sources of contamination for humans and other animals.

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