Genetic profile of Echinococcus granulosus isolated from the livestock and human in northwest Iran

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is categorized among the highly important zoonoses, occurring in many regions of the world. Iran is a significant endemic focus of CE, where it poses substantial economic and public health challenges to local communities. The current study aimed to identify the genotype and species profile of E. granulosus among the patients and livestock in Qazvin, Iran. A total of 80 hydatid cyst samples were collected from humans as well as farm animals including sheep, cattle, and goats. DNA extraction and PCR-sequencing were conducted targeting the mitochondrial CO1 and ND1 regions. Molecular phylogeny and haplotype network analysis was calculated for the isolates. Out of 79 evaluated samples, 97.5% belonged to G1 genotype and 2.5% to G3 genotype. The G1 genotype was present in all infected participants. Also, the study showed the G1 to be the most common genotype of E. granulosus among both the humans and the animals examined. Furthermore, our results emphasize on the importance of the sheep-dog cycle in public health.