Comparison of the Detection of Toxocara Spp. in the Soils of Public Parks of Ahvaz (Southwest of Iran) by PCR and Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP)

Introduction: The infections caused by Toxocara spp. are considered as one of the most important zoonotic diseases in the world, especially in developing countries. Human toxocariasis, particularly in children, is acquired by playing in public parks. Hence, the aim of the current study was to detect Toxocara spp. in the soils of public parks of the city of Ahvaz, southwest of Iran, using the PCR and loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) methods. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 260 soil samples were randomly collected from the different public parks of the city of Ahvaz. After performing zinc sulfate (ZnSO4) flotation technique, the DNA samples were extracted from the isolated Toxocara spp. eggs. Lastly, the extracted DNA was used for PCR and LAMP-based molecular detection. Results: Out of 260 specimens, 57 (21.9%) samples were found positive for Toxocara spp., using the PCR method, out of that 38 (14.6%) samples were positive for T. canis and 19 (7.3%) samples were positive for T. cati. Also, out of 260 specimens, 81 (31.1%) cases were positive for Toxocara species, using the LAMP method, among them 51 (19.6%) samples were found positive for T. canis and 30 (11.5%) samples were positive for T. cati. Kappa (κ) coefficient between PCR and LAMP showed a strong agreement (0.766, P-value=0.002). Conclusion: The obtained data showed a relatively high outbreak of Toxocara spp. in the public parks’ soils of the city, using the PCR and LAMP methods. Since the parasite can cause human toxocariasis, particularly in children; thus, the health authorities of the city of Ahvaz and other similar cities, especially in developing countries, must pay more attention to the hygiene of the public parks’ soils.