Infection status of the estuarine turtles Kinosternon integrum and Trachemys scripta with Gnathostoma binucleatum in Sinaloa, Mexico

Human gnathostomosis, a serious public health issue in Mexico, is endemic to Sinaloa. The disease is mainly caused by consumption of the raw meat of freshwater or estuarine fishes infected with the advanced third stage larvae (AL3) of Gnathostoma binucleatum. In the present study, we examined estuarine turtles with a sample consisting of 23 Trachemys scripta and 5 Kinosternon integrum from Sinaloa, Mexico for the presence of Gnathostoma larvae; such examination was made by the pressing method of skeletal muscles between 2 glass plates. The results showed that both turtles harbored G. binucleatum AL3; identification was achieved by morphology and also by PCR/sequencing of the ITS2 region of ribosomal DNA of the larvae. Infection prevalence was higher for K. integrum (80%) than for T. scripta (69.6%), but heavy infection (> 10 AL3/turtle) was observed in the larger sized individuals of T. scripta. Consumption of the raw meat of these turtles represents a risk to acquire the disease.