Find in Library

<i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> is a ubiquitous zoonotic protozoan parasite that infects a wide variety range of warm-blooded animals. This study describes the epidemiological scenario of <i>T. gondii</i> in an indigenous community that relies on subsistence hunting in a well-conserved and isolated area of the Peruvian Amazon. The high seropositivity against <i>T. gondii</i> in humans (83.3% IgG and 6.1% IgM), wild mammals (30.45%, 17 species), peri-domestic rodents (10.0% <i>Rattus</i> sp.), and domestic animals (94.1% dogs and 100% cats) indicates the existence of a sylvatic cycle in the community under study. Individual age was found to be positively associated with IgG detection against <i>T. gondii</i> but not with IgM. It is estimated that each family consumed 5.67 infected animals per year with terrestrial species having higher infective rates than arboreal species. The main risk factors included improper handling and cooking of wild meat, poor hygiene practices, and feeding uncooked offal to domestic animals. This scenario results in a continuous process of infection and reinfection within the indigenous community with cats, dogs, and peri-domestic animals becoming infected through the ingestion of infected raw viscera. Our results emphasize the need to promote safe food handling practices and disposal of waste materials from hunted animals in such communities.