Morphological and Molecular Diagnosis of Necator americanus and Ancylostoma ceylanicum Recovered from Villagers in Northern Cambodia

Abstract

Human hookworm infections caused by adult <i>Ancylostoma</i> spp. and <i>Necator americanus</i> are one of the most important tropical diseases. We performed a survey of intestinal helminths using the Kato-Katz fecal examination technique targeting 1,156 villagers residing in 2 northern provinces (Preah Vihear and Stung Treng) of Cambodia in 2018. The results revealed a high overall egg positive rate of intestinal helminths (61.9%), and the egg positive rate of hookworms was 11.6%. Nine of the hookworm egg positive cases in Preah Vihear Province were treated with 5-10 mg/kg pyrantel pamoate followed by purging with magnesium salts, and a total of 65 adult hookworms were expelled in diarrheic stools. The adult hookworms were analyzed morphologically and molecularly to confirm the species. The morphologies of the buccal cavity and dorsal rays on the costa were observed with a light microscope, and the nucleotide sequences of mitochondrial cytochrome <i>c</i> oxidase subunit 1 (<i>cox</i>1) gene were analyzed. The majority of the hookworm adults (90.7%) were <i>N. americanus</i>, whereas the remaining 9.3% were <i>Ancylostoma ceylanicum</i>, a rare hookworm species infecting humans. The results revealed a high prevalence of hookworm infections among people in a northern part of Cambodia, suggesting the necessity of a sustained survey combined with control measures against hookworm infections.