Abstract
Echinococcosis, or hydatidosis, is a serious veterinary disease and public health issue worldwide, particularly in rural areas in which dogs have frequent contact with local herbivores. This study assessed the frequency of hydatidosis found among farm animals slaughtered in Al-Jouf Province in northern Saudi Arabia in 2021. A total of 156754 sheep, 36337 goats, 8590 camels, and 986 cattle were inspected for hydatidosis infection by comprehensive evaluation involving meticulous visual inspection and manual exploration of the internal organs through palpation. The cysts were subjected to molecular and phylogenetic analysis. The overall prevalence rates of hydatid cysts were 0.43%, 0.19%, 0.54%, and 0.51% in the inspected sheep, goats, camels, and cattle, respectively. The highest disease prevalence rates among sheep (27.8%) and goats (30.9%) occurred in the spring, and the highest prevalence rates among camels (41.3%) and cattle (80%) were in the summer. Regarding the prevalence of the disease in four slaughterhouses in the Al-Jouf Province, the highest prevalence in sheep, goats, and camels was in the Tabarjal slaughterhouse (1.43%, 0.81%, and 1.08%, respectively), although the Al-Qurayat slaughterhouse had the highest prevalence rate in cattle (1.98%). Complete molecular analysis indicated that cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) sequences from cyst isolates belonged to Echinococcus granulosus (E. granulosus). Moreover, there was high homology (98-100%) with associated Genbank sequences of E. granulosus isolated from sheep in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Sheep and camels were a significant source of hydatidosis transmission to dogs and helped to maintain disease incidence in the Al-Jouf Province. Thus, significant efforts should focus on preventing cyst transmission from abattoirs and infected stray dogs.