Food and Waterborne Parasitology最新文献

{"title":"Potentials and challenges in the isolation and detection of ascarid eggs in complex environmental matrices","authors":"Patrick Waindok ,&nbsp;Marie-Kristin Raulf ,&nbsp;Christina Strube","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00174","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00174","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Ascarid infections constitute a major concern for both human and animal health risk assessment. Although being effectively transmitted by soil, water and contaminated food, reliable detection of ascarid eggs in environmental media often remains challenging. However, contamination of the environment with ascarid ova has gained more attention as a decisive part of proper risk assessment in recent years. Due to various factors, such as sample matrices, dissociation detergents and flotation solutions, defined and standardised protocols for the isolation of eggs from complex environmental matrices are difficult to establish and therefore limited. Thus, this study reviews common techniques used for the recovery of ascarid eggs from environmental media with special emphasis on sampling strategies, purification procedures and microscopic as well as molecular detection of egg contamination. Despite various advancements, mainly in the field of molecular methods leading to more reliable and sensitive detection, it can be concluded that there is still a need for unified guidelines for sampling and recovery of ascarid eggs derived from complex environmental matrices.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article e00174"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/4a/53/main.PMC9396397.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33438320","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Editorial: Foodborne and waterborne parasites at the 2020/2021 European Multicolloquium of Parasitology (EMOP)","authors":"Lucy J. Robertson ,&nbsp;Thomas Romig","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00179","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00179","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This Special Issue in Food and Waterborne Parasitology consists of six articles derived from presentations at the 13th European Multicolloquium of Parasitology (EMOP), that was held in Belgrade, Serbia in October 2021. Within the broad scope of parasitology presented at EMOP 2020/2021, the focus of several sessions, seminars, and presentations was on foodborne and waterborne parasites, with different aspects concerned with <em>Cryptosporidium</em>, <em>Toxoplasma</em>, <em>Trichinella</em>, and <em>Opisthorchis</em> all featuring. Although only a few manuscripts on foodborne and waterborne parasites are presented in this SI, the wide-ranging scope of the articles and, more broadly, of the presentations at EMOP 2020/2021, suggests that the topic of parasites transmitted by food and/or water remains of interest in the European parasitology community. We believe this is likely to be the case for years to come, and the topic is likely to feature prominently in the next (14th) EMOP, scheduled to be held in Poland in 2024. This interest, along with some obvious gaps in the articles on foodborne and waterborne parasites of both European and global importance (such as tapeworms, particularly <em>Echinococcus</em> spp. and <em>Taenia solium</em>), suggests to us that another SI on the subject could be of value as an outcome of the 14th EMOP.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article e00179"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/ab/66/main.PMC9483569.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33466564","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Editorial Board Page","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/S2405-6766(22)00038-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S2405-6766(22)00038-5","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article e00181"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000385/pdfft?md5=888d0026a244a466bb2e081483d3639d&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000385-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"137043081","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum infections in sheep and goats in Switzerland: Seroprevalence and occurrence in aborted foetuses","authors":"Walter Basso ,&nbsp;Fabienne Holenweger ,&nbsp;Gereon Schares ,&nbsp;Norbert Müller ,&nbsp;Lucía M. Campero ,&nbsp;Flurin Ardüser ,&nbsp;Gaia Moore-Jones ,&nbsp;Caroline F. Frey ,&nbsp;Patrik Zanolari","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00176","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00176","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><em>Toxoplasma gondii</em> and <em>Neospora caninum</em> infections are important causes of abortion in ruminants. Besides, meat from <em>T. gondii</em> infected animals represent a major infection source for humans. The occurrence of these protozoan parasites in Switzerland was investigated both, in a nationwide cross-sectional serological survey, and by molecular methods in aborted sheep and goat foetuses. A total of 653 sheep from 143 farms and 748 goats from 164 farms were tested by commercial ELISAs and inconclusive results were defined by immunoblot. Besides, a risk factor analysis for seropositivity was performed. The observed seroprevalences for <em>T. gondii</em> in sheep and goats were 66.3% and 50.5% at the animal level, and 90.9% and 81.1% at the farm level, respectively. For <em>N. caninum</em>, the detected seroprevalences in sheep and goats were 0.8% and 0.9% at the animal level, and 2.8% and 1.8% at the farm level, respectively. Older small ruminants, and sheep (vs. goats) had a higher risk of being seropositive to <em>T. gondii.</em> Alpine grazing in summer was identified as a protective factor for seropositivity to <em>T. gondii</em> in both animal species. <em>Toxoplasma gondii</em> and <em>N. caninum</em> DNA were detected in 6.1% and 2.4% (<em>n</em> = 82), and in 6.8% and 1.4% (<em>n</em> = 73) of the tested ovine and caprine foetuses, respectively. These results suggest the involvement of these parasites in abortions and reveal a high prevalence of <em>T. gondii</em> and lower prevalence of <em>N. caninum</em> infections in small ruminants in Switzerland. They also suggest that consumption of undercooked meat from <em>T. gondii</em> infected sheep and goats may represent a risk for public health.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article e00176"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9418186/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"33446598","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Efficacy of clofazimine and nitazoxanide combination in treating intestinal cryptosporidiosis and enhancing intestinal cellular regeneration in immunocompromised mice","authors":"Marwa Esmat ,&nbsp;Amany A. Abdel-Aal ,&nbsp;Maisa A. Shalaby ,&nbsp;Manal Badawi ,&nbsp;Hala Elaskary ,&nbsp;Ahmed Badawi Yousif ,&nbsp;Mennat-Elrahman A. Fahmy","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00161","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00161","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><em>Cryptosporidium</em> is a widely distributed food and water-borne enteric protozoan that affects a wide range of vertebrates, resulting in life-threatening consequences, particularly in immunocompromised hosts. The lack of effective anti-cryptosporidial drugs may be related to the parasite's unique intestinal location, plus the lack of studies on the process by which the protozoan is able to impair intestinal cellular function. The present work aimed to assess the effect of clofazimine (CFZ), an FDA-approved drug for the treatment of leprosy, as an anti-cryptosporidial drug, using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and an immunocompromised mouse model. The affected intestinal mucosa with parasitic stages in the infected non-treated group showed signs of severe cellular degeneration, including the loss of tight junctions, deformed and damaged microvilli and irregularly distributed nuclei with a severely vacuolated cytoplasm. Comparatively, nitazoxanide (NTZ) monotherapy showed the lowest efficacy as the drug was associated with the lowest rate of oocyst shedding. In addition, NTZ treatment failed to achieve the return of complete cellular function; abnormalities were evident in the microvilli, cytoplasmic organelles and nuclear features. Clofazimine demonstrated an improvement of the mucosal cellular components, including mitochondria and significantly reduced oocyst shedding. Combined treatment with low-dose CFZ and half-dose NTZ resulted in a significant improvement in the enterocyte cellular structures with an absence of intracellular parasitic stages. These results indicate that CFZ, a safe and readily prescribed drug, effectively reduces cryptosporidiosis when used in combination with only half the dose of NTZ. Used in combination, these drugs were shown to be efficient in regaining intestinal cellular activity following <em>Cryptosporidium-</em>induced functional damage in an immunocompromised mouse model.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00161"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9118138/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10599667","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Trichinella-induced immunomodulation: Another tale of helminth success","authors":"F. Bruschi ,&nbsp;D.S. Ashour ,&nbsp;A.A. Othman","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00164","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00164","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><em>Trichinella spiralis</em> is a unique parasite in that both the adults and larvae survive in two different intracellular niches in the same host. The immune response, albeit intense, is highly modulated to ensure the survival of both the host and the parasite. It is skewed to T helper 2 and regulatory arms. Diverse cells from both the innate and adaptive compartments of immunity, including dendritic cells, T regulatory cells, and alternatively activated macrophages are thought to mediate such immunomodulation. The parasite has also an outstanding ability to evade the immune system by several elaborate processes. The molecules derived from the parasites including <em>Trichinella</em>, particularly the components of the excretory–secretory products, are being continually identified and explored for the potential of ameliorating the immunopathology in animal models of diverse inflammatory and autoimmune human diseases. Herein we discuss the various aspects of <em>Trichinella</em>-induced immunomodulation with a special reference to the practical implications of the immune system manipulation in alleviating or possibly curing human diseases.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00164"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S240567662200021X/pdfft?md5=3b275a2f9c12144607480cb01b889a80&pid=1-s2.0-S240567662200021X-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91685189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Global changes in gene expression related to Opisthorchis felineus liver fluke infection reveal temporal heterogeneity of a mammalian host response","authors":"Maria Y. Pakharukova ,&nbsp;Oxana Zaparina ,&nbsp;Nina V. Baginskaya ,&nbsp;Viatcheslav A. Mordvinov","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00159","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00159","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The food-borne trematode <em>Opisthorchis felineus</em> colonizes bile ducts of the liver of fish-eating mammals including humans. Among chronically infected individuals, this opisthorchiasis involves hepatobiliary problems, including chronic inflammation, periductal fibrosis, biliary intraepithelial neoplasia, and even cholangiocarcinoma. Despite numerous studies at the pathomorphological level, the systemic response and cellular pathogenesis of these disorders are not well studied.</p><p>To conduct in-depth research and to gain insights into the mechanism by which <em>O. felineus</em> infection causes precancerous liver lesions, we (i) applied a next-generation-sequencing–based technology (high-throughput mRNA sequencing) to identify differentially expressed genes in the liver of golden hamsters infected with <em>O. felineus</em> at 1 and 3 months postinfection and (ii) verified the most pronounced changes in gene expression by western blotting and immunohistochemistry.</p><p>A total of 2151 genes were found to be differentially expressed between uninfected and infected hamsters (“infection” factor), whereas 371 genes were differentially expressed when we analyzed “time × infection” interaction. Cluster analysis revealed that sets of activated genes of cellular pathways were different between acute (1 month postinfection) and chronic (3 months postinfection) opisthorchiasis. This enriched KEGG pathways were “Cell adhesion molecules”, “Hippo signaling”, “ECM-receptor interaction”, “Cell cycle”, “TGF-beta”, and “P53 signaling”. Moreover, epithelial–mesenchymal transition was the most enriched (q-value = 2.2E-07) MSigDB hallmark in the set of differentially expressed genes of all <em>O. felineus</em>–infected animals. Transcriptomic data were supported by the results of western blotting and immunohistochemistry revealing the upregulation of vimentin, N-cadherin, and α-smooth muscle actin postinfection.</p><p>Our data expand knowledge about global changes in gene expression in the <em>O. felineus</em>–infected host liver and contribute to understanding the biliary neoplasia associated with the liver fluke infection.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00159"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000166/pdfft?md5=921df6ff227baea814f4b4e24d6b6741&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000166-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47819660","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"First report demonstrating the presence of Toxocara spp. eggs on vegetables grown in community gardens in Europe","authors":"Sara R. Healy ,&nbsp;Eric R. Morgan ,&nbsp;Joaquin M. Prada ,&nbsp;Martha Betson","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00158","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00158","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><em>Toxocara canis</em> and <em>T. cati</em> are zoonotic roundworm parasites of dogs, cats and foxes. These definitive hosts pass eggs in their faeces, which contaminate the environment and can subsequently be ingested via soil or contaminated vegetables. In humans, infection with <em>Toxocara</em> can have serious health implications. This proof-of-concept study aimed to investigate the presence of <em>Toxocara</em> spp. eggs on ‘ready-to-eat’ vegetables (lettuce, spinach, spring onion and celery) sampled from community gardens in southern England. The contamination of vegetables with <em>Toxocara</em> eggs has never been investigated in the UK before, and more widely, this is the first time vegetables grown in community gardens in Europe have been assessed for <em>Toxocara</em> egg contamination. Sixteen community gardens participated in the study, providing 82 vegetable samples fit for analysis. Study participants also completed an anonymous questionnaire on observed visits to the sites by definitive hosts of <em>Toxocara</em>. Comparison of egg recovery methods was performed using lettuce samples spiked with a series of <em>Toxocara</em> spp. egg concentrations, with sedimentation and centrifugal concentration retrieving the highest number of eggs. A sample (100 g) of each vegetable type obtained from participating community gardens was tested for the presence of <em>Toxocara</em> eggs using the optimised method. Two lettuce samples tested positive for <em>Toxocara</em> spp. eggs, giving a prevalence of 2.4% (95% CI =1.3–3.5%) for vegetable samples overall, and 6.5% (95% CI = 4.7–8.3%; <em>n</em> = 31) specifically for lettuce. Questionnaire data revealed that foxes, cats and dogs frequently visited the community gardens in the study, with 88% (68/77) of respondents reporting seeing a definitive host species or the faeces of a definitive host at their site. This proof-of-concept study showed for the first time the presence of <em>Toxocara</em> spp. eggs on vegetables grown in the UK, as well as within the soil where these vegetables originated, and highlights biosecurity and zoonotic risks in community gardens. This study establishes a method for assessment of <em>Toxocara</em> spp. eggs on vegetable produce and paves the way for larger-scale investigations of <em>Toxocara</em> spp. egg contamination on field-grown vegetables.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00158"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000154/pdfft?md5=6b75425328136c1d94059d25e21b62d4&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000154-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46391103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ascaridoid nematodes infecting commercially important marine fish and squid species from Bangladesh waters in the Bay of Bengal","authors":"Miguel Bao ,&nbsp;Paolo Cipriani ,&nbsp;Lucilla Giulietti ,&nbsp;Mohammad Ashraful Alam ,&nbsp;Marialetizia Palomba ,&nbsp;Simonetta Mattiucci ,&nbsp;Arne Levsen","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00157","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00157","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Parasitic ascaridoid nematodes occur in a wide range of marine organisms across the globe. Some species of the anisakid family (Ascaridoidea: Anisakidae) can cause gastrointestinal disease in humans (i. e. anisakidosis). Despite their importance as potentially hazardous parasites, the occurrence and infection characteristics of ascaridoids are still poorly known from many host species and geographical areas. This study investigated the diversity and infection levels of ascaridoid parasites in various commercial fish and squid host species off Bangladesh. Fish and squid specimens were visually inspected for nematodes using the UV-press method. Nematodes were assigned to genus level based on morphology and identified by sequence analyses of the entire ITS region and partial 28S rDNA and mtDNA <em>cox2</em> genes. Third-stage larvae (L3) of <em>Anisakis typica</em> occurred at low prevalence (<em>P</em> = 10% and 8%, respectively) in the viscera of <em>Selar crumenophthalmus</em> and <em>Trichiurus lepturus</em>, while <em>Hysterothylacium amoyense</em> occurred in the viscera of <em>Sardinella fimbriata</em> (<em>P</em> = 1%) and the viscera and muscle of <em>Harpadon nehereus</em> (<em>P</em> = 32%) and <em>T. lepturus</em> (<em>P</em> = 76%). <em>Lappetascaris</em> sp. Type A L3 occurred in the mantle of the squid <em>Uroteuthis duvaucelii</em> (<em>P</em> = 11%). <em>Anisakis</em> and <em>Lappetascaris</em> species, and <em>H. amoyense</em> were firstly identified in the Bay of Bengal. The potentially zoonotic <em>A. typica</em> was only found in fish viscera. <em>Hysterothylacium amoyense</em> and <em>Lappetascaris</em> sp., both generally regarded as non-zoonotic, occurred at low prevalence in the muscle or mantle of fish or squid, respectively. Since consumption of raw or lightly processed seafood seems to be rare in Bangladesh, the risk of acquiring anisakidosis from consuming fishery products from off Bangladesh appears to be low. Due to its reddish appearance, the visual presence of <em>H. amoyense</em> larvae in fish flesh may represent a food quality issue.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00157"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/34/dd/main.PMC9065311.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10251856","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Horizontal gene transfer provides insights into the deep evolutionary history and biology of Trichinella","authors":"Dante Zarlenga ,&nbsp;Peter Thompson ,&nbsp;Makedonka Mitreva ,&nbsp;Bruce A. Rosa ,&nbsp;Eric Hoberg","doi":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00155","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.fawpar.2022.e00155","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Evolution involves temporal changes in the characteristics of a species that are subsequently propagated or rejected through natural selection. In the case of parasites, host switching also plays a prominent role in the evolutionary process. These changes are rooted in genetic variation and gene flow where genes may be deleted, mutated (sequence), duplicated, rearranged and/or translocated and then transmitted through vertical gene transfer. However, the introduction of new genes is not driven only by Mendelian inheritance and mutation but also by the introduction of DNA from outside a lineage in the form of horizontal gene transfer between donor and recipient organisms. Once introduced and integrated into the biology of the recipient, vertical inheritance then perpetuates the newly acquired genetic factor, where further functionality may involve co-option of what has become a pre-existing physiological capacity. Upon sequencing the <em>Trichinella spiralis</em> (Clade I) genome, a cyanate hydratase (cyanase) gene was identified that is common among bacteria, fungi, and plants, but rarely observed among other eukaryotes. The sequence of the <em>Trichinella</em> cyanase gene clusters with those derived from the Kingdom Plantae in contrast to the genes found in some Clade III and IV nematodes that cluster with cyanases of bacterial origin. Phylogenetic analyses suggest that the <em>Trichinella</em> cyanase was acquired during the Devonian period and independently from those of other nematodes. These data may help inform us of the deep evolutionary history and ecological connectivity of early ancestors within the lineage of contemporary <em>Trichinella</em>. Further, in many extant organisms, cyanate detoxification has been largely superseded by energy requirements for metabolism. Thus, deciphering the function of <em>Trichinella</em> cyanase may provide new avenues for treatment and control.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":37941,"journal":{"name":"Food and Waterborne Parasitology","volume":"27 ","pages":"Article e00155"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405676622000129/pdfft?md5=15deba4f5bbda42a49c4ced29c078991&pid=1-s2.0-S2405676622000129-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46463546","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}