Metacercariae of trematodes (Digenea) in the flesh of the common carp in Europe: Random occurrence of an unknown parasite or an issue of epidemiological concern?

Source: PubMed Central Open Access, NCBI / U.S. National Library of Medicine

In fillets of cultured common carp intended for human consumption, large cysts containing larvae (metacercariae) of trematodes (Digenea) were found. These larvae belong to the family Diplostomidae, whose adults most often mature in birds and mammals. Although humans may acquire diplostomid infection only incidentally and the number of reported human cases of diplostomosis is not very high, except for alariosis, the presence of metacercariae in carp fillets is an epidemiological and economic concern due to the popularity of carp as a food source in Central and Eastern Europe. Morphological and molecular data (sequencing of three genetic markers) did not allow the assignment of the larvae to any known diplostomid genus. ab0005 Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink lk0015 float portrait ga1.jpg f0015 anchor portrait graphical ab0010 Highlights • Large cysts were found in fillets of carp, most important freshwater fish farmed in Central and Eastern Europe. li0005 • The larvae in cysts belong to the family Diplostomidae, which most often mature in birds and mammals. li0010 • Molecular data did not assign the larvae to any known diplostomid genus. li0015 • This finding may have epidemiological and economic consequences. li0020 simple l0005 author-highlights ab0015