1. Investigación

Toxoplasmosis is one of the most common parasitic zoonoses and represents a significant health risk for humans, especially for immunodeficient patients. The main transmission route is by oral uptake of oocysts and consumption of undercooked meat of infected animals. Different species have been evaluated as possible reservoirs of the parasite, but few studies have been carried out to examine the role of horses in transmission of the disease. Given the proximity of these animals to humans and the widespread consumption of their meat in many countries, including the Mediterranean basin, it is important to determine the prevalence of T. gondii infection in this species. In this study, blood samples from 105 horses were collected and the presence of T. gondii was evaluated by serological and molecular methods. Antibodies against T. gondii of 12 horses (11.43%) were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), whereas 29 horses (27.62%) showed positive for PCR. Seroprevalence was related to use of the animals, being higher in horses used for dressage than in others. Purebreds had higher seroprevalence than crossbred animals. No differences between breed, sex or age were found. The results of this study confirm the presence of T. gondii infection in horses, highlighting the need to analyse the meat of this species before human consumption and to control of this infection in horses, as they could be an important reservoir of this zoonotic parasite.

Microsporidia are widely spread obligate intracellular fungal pathogens from vertebrate and invertebrate organisms, mainly transmitted by contaminated food and water. This study aims to detect the presence of major human-pathogenic microsporidia, i.e., Enterocytozoon bieneusi, Encephalitozoon intestinalis, Encephalitozoon hellem, and Encephalitozoon cuniculi, in the gastrointestinal tract of commercially harvested marine fish from Mediterranean coast of the Comunidad Valenciana, Eastern Spain. A total of 251 fish, 138 farmed fish and 113 wild fish from commercial fishing were tested by SYBR Green real-time PCR, enabling the simultaneous detection of the four targeted species. E. intestinalis/hellem was found in 1.45% of farmed fish and 7.96% of wild fish, while Enterocytozoonidae was detected in 2.90% and 18.58% of farmed and wild fish, respectively. E. cuniculi was not detected in any of the analyzed specimens. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of E. intestinalis/hellem in fish, particularly in marine fish. Although the role of fish in these species’ epidemiology remains unknown, this finding points out a potential public health risk linked to fish consumption. Further studies are necessary to characterize these microsporidia in fish hosts better and to elucidate their epidemiological role.