Detection of Echinococcus multilocularis in domestic dogs of Shiqu County in the summer herding

Alveolar echinococcosis(AE) is one of the most serious parasitic zoonosisin Asia. Shiqu County is the most important endemic area of AE in China. Our primary objective is to find out the risk factors for Echinococcus multilocularisinfection in domestic dogs in Shiqu County during the summer herding period. A total of 120 fecal samples were collected from 60 ranchers in October 2016. Nested PCR (nPCR) was performed to amplify regions of the mitochondrial12S rRNA gene of E. multilocularis. The results showed that the infection rates of AE in dogs from Qiwu, Yiniu, Changshaganma, Derongma, Mengyi, and Xiazha villages were 5, 5, 10, 20, 10, and 5%, respectively. It should be stressed that the infected dogs will shed eggs through feces and may have a habit of preying on rodents, the intermediate hostof the parasite, and become re-infected. This investigation confirmed the presence of E. multilocularis infection in dogs in Shiqu and revealed the risk factors associated with the infection during summer herding.