Confirmation by necropsy of a high prevalence of porcine cysticercosis in a rural district of Madagascar.

Neurocysticercosis is recognized as an important health issue in the Malagasy population. To date, investigations into prevalence of infection with the causative agent, Taenia solium, in the parasite's natural animal intermediate hosts, have relied on serological methods which have been found to be non-specific. We determined the prevalence of porcine cysticercosis among pigs from a contiguous area of the Betafo and Mandoto administrative districts, Vakinankaratra Region, Madagascar. One hundred and four slaughter-weight pigs were examined by detailed necropsy examination including slicing of the heart, tongue, masseter muscles, diaphragm and carcase musculature. Thirty-seven animals (35.6%) were found infected with T. solium, representing one of the highest rates of infection ever reported, worldwide. These findings highlight the importance of T. solium in Madagascar and support the need for increased efforts to prevent the parasite's transmission to reduce its burden on the health of the Malagasy population.

Bio-guided identification of proteins for the diagnosis of cysticercosis in swine.

Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is one of the most prevalent parasitic infection of the brain and the most common cause of seizures in adults in tropical countries. Cysticercosis is caused by larvae of Taenia solium, a human tapeworm. Pig or humans are infected by ingestion of eggs in food contaminated by human feces. Diagnosis and treatment of pigs is a pillar of the control of the disease in a country. However current diagnostic tests are based on ELISA and/or Western blot using native antigens needing laboratory facilities not available in rural areas. Development of a pen side diagnostic test for swines, makes sense. Immunochromatographic test should be adapted for this purpose. To design it we started a bio-guided identification of new proteins in cysticercus fluid. Proteins were analyzed using ion exchange chromatography and 2D separation and were selected by Western blot analysis using sera from infected/non infected pigs. Spots from the Coomassie-stained gel corresponding to these proteins were then analyzed by mass spectroscopy and proteins were identified using a bank of Expressed Sequence Tags (EST) of T. solium. Eighteen new proteins of interest were identified and nine were selected for further development.

Spatio-temporal prevalence of porcine cysticercosis in Madagascar based on meat inspection.

BACKGROUND: Taenia solium cysticercosis is a parasitic meat-borne disease that is highly prevalent in pigs and humans in Africa, but the burden is vastly underestimated due to the lack of official control along the pork commodity chain, which hampers long-term control policies. METHODS: The apparent and corrected prevalences of T. solium cysticercosis were investigated in pork carcasses slaughtered and retailed in Antananarivo (Madagascar), thanks to a 12-month monitoring plan in two urban abattoirs. RESULTS: Overall apparent prevalence was estimated at 4.6% [4.2 - 5.0%]. The corrected overall prevalence defined as the estimated prevalence after accounting for the sensitivity of meat inspection was 21.03% [19.18- 22.87%]. Significant differences among geoclimatic regions were observed only for indigenous pigs, with an apparent prevalence estimated at 7.9% [6.0 - 9.9%] in the northern and western regions, 7.3% [6.0 - 8.6%] in the central region, and 6.2% [4.7 - 7.8%] in the southern region. In the central region, where both exotic and indigenous pigs were surveyed, indigenous pigs were 8.5 times [6.7 - 10.7] more likely to be infected than exotic improved pigs. Urban consumers were more likely to encounter cysticercosis in pork in the rainy season, which is a major at risk period, in particular in December. Differences between abattoirs were also identified. CONCLUSION: Our results underline the need for improved surveillance and control programmes to limit T. solium cysticercosis in carcasses by introducing a risk-based meat inspection procedure that accounts for the origin and breed of the pigs, and the season.

Control of cysticercosis in Madagascar: beware of the pitfalls.

Taenia solium cysticercosis is a zoonosis of public health importance in areas where the disease is endemic, with significant economic impacts on human health and the swine industry. Several gaps remain in the epidemiology of the parasite and the strategies of control in developing countries. We detail the key factors to consider in Madagascar in terms of the porcine husbandry system, Taenia transmission cycle, and diagnosis of cysticercosis in pigs, in order to better estimate the sanitary and economic impacts of this parasitic disease as well as to define an integrated control program.