Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values
Introduction: Diseases caused by contaminated food are a threat to public health. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is a widespread vegetable for human alimentation. Some systematic reviews showed parasitic contamination of lettuce in Brazil. Objective: To evaluate if the economic value of the places where...
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Faculdade de Medicina do ABC
2025-02-01
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| Series: | ABCS Health Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://nepas.emnuvens.com.br/abcshs/article/view/2411 |
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| author | Gustavo Trentini Barancelli Larissa Kochenborger Fernanda Gracieli Machado Brum Fabiana Tonial Cassiano Mateus Forcelini |
| author_facet | Gustavo Trentini Barancelli Larissa Kochenborger Fernanda Gracieli Machado Brum Fabiana Tonial Cassiano Mateus Forcelini |
| author_sort | Gustavo Trentini Barancelli |
| collection | DOAJ |
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Introduction: Diseases caused by contaminated food are a threat to public health. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is a widespread vegetable for human alimentation. Some systematic reviews showed parasitic contamination of lettuce in Brazil. Objective: To evaluate if the economic value of the places where lettuce is bought could be a determinant of parasitic contamination. Methods: We assessed the presence of parasites in the curly lettuces sold in the city of Passo Fundo, Brazil, and compared the frequency of contamination between markets and fruit stores, and between areas with high and low economic values. 130 samples of lettuce from 65 commercial establishments scattered throughout the city were washed with distilled water and analyzed under optical microscopy after 24 hours of spontaneous sedimentation method. Results: Parasitic forms were found in 80% of the samples, namely: ciliated cysts (probable Balantioides coli), larvae of nematode, Ascaris lumbricoides, cestode eggs, Giardia lamblia, Hymenolepis nana, Entamoeba coli, and Fasciola hepatica. Contamination by larvae of nematode was more frequent in fruit stores than in markets (35.9% vs. 19.7%; p=0.039). Areas with high and low economic values had the same frequency of contamination, but there was a trend to higher contamination by cestode eggs in areas with low economic values. Conclusion: This study was the first to show that the frequency of parasitic contamination is not different compared to establishments located in areas of high and low economic values, refuting any common sense that regions of the city with higher income are less exposed to parasitic contamination of food.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-91452df061f04a53b6d79569d059d59e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2318-4965 2357-8114 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Faculdade de Medicina do ABC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | ABCS Health Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-91452df061f04a53b6d79569d059d59e2025-02-10T05:41:11ZengFaculdade de Medicina do ABCABCS Health Sciences2318-49652357-81142025-02-0110.7322/abcshs.2023130.2411Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic valuesGustavo Trentini Barancelli0Larissa Kochenborger1Fernanda Gracieli Machado Brum2Fabiana Tonial3Cassiano Mateus Forcelini4Progragama de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais, Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF) – Passo Fundo (RS), BrazilEscola de Medicina, Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF) – Passo Fundo (RS), BrazilPrograma de Pós-Graduação em Agronomia, Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF) – Passo Fundo (RS), BrazilInstituto da Saúde, Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF) – Passo Fundo (RS), BrazilProgragama de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais, Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF) – Passo Fundo (RS), Brazil / Escola de Medicina, Universidade de Passo Fundo (UPF) – Passo Fundo (RS), Brazil Introduction: Diseases caused by contaminated food are a threat to public health. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is a widespread vegetable for human alimentation. Some systematic reviews showed parasitic contamination of lettuce in Brazil. Objective: To evaluate if the economic value of the places where lettuce is bought could be a determinant of parasitic contamination. Methods: We assessed the presence of parasites in the curly lettuces sold in the city of Passo Fundo, Brazil, and compared the frequency of contamination between markets and fruit stores, and between areas with high and low economic values. 130 samples of lettuce from 65 commercial establishments scattered throughout the city were washed with distilled water and analyzed under optical microscopy after 24 hours of spontaneous sedimentation method. Results: Parasitic forms were found in 80% of the samples, namely: ciliated cysts (probable Balantioides coli), larvae of nematode, Ascaris lumbricoides, cestode eggs, Giardia lamblia, Hymenolepis nana, Entamoeba coli, and Fasciola hepatica. Contamination by larvae of nematode was more frequent in fruit stores than in markets (35.9% vs. 19.7%; p=0.039). Areas with high and low economic values had the same frequency of contamination, but there was a trend to higher contamination by cestode eggs in areas with low economic values. Conclusion: This study was the first to show that the frequency of parasitic contamination is not different compared to establishments located in areas of high and low economic values, refuting any common sense that regions of the city with higher income are less exposed to parasitic contamination of food. https://nepas.emnuvens.com.br/abcshs/article/view/2411lettucefood contaminationparasitesHelminthsprotozoan infectionsincome |
| spellingShingle | Gustavo Trentini Barancelli Larissa Kochenborger Fernanda Gracieli Machado Brum Fabiana Tonial Cassiano Mateus Forcelini Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values ABCS Health Sciences lettuce food contamination parasites Helminths protozoan infections income |
| title | Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values |
| title_full | Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values |
| title_fullStr | Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values |
| title_full_unstemmed | Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values |
| title_short | Parasitic contamination of lettuce: comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values |
| title_sort | parasitic contamination of lettuce comparison between establishments located in areas with high and low economic values |
| topic | lettuce food contamination parasites Helminths protozoan infections income |
| url | https://nepas.emnuvens.com.br/abcshs/article/view/2411 |
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