Prevalence of Pork-borne parasites: Trichinella, Cysticercus, Sarcocystis and Hydatid in carcasses of Pigs in Alexandria, Egypt.

Trichinella spiralis, Sarcocystis suihominis, and Cysticercus cellulosae are pork-borne parasites of significant zoonotic importance due to their potential to cause severe clinical consequences in infected humans. Conversely, Sarcocystis miescheriana, Cysticercus tenuicollis, and Hydatid cysts primarily impact pork quality and the economy. These parasites negatively affect pork production by altering the meat's characteristics, such as increasing its pH (in the case of Sarcocystis), and by causing adverse effects on pig health, including emaciation. Additionally, their presence poses public health risks, further emphasizing the importance of effective control and inspection measures in pork production. this study included A total of 2,872 pig carcasses were examined in Al-Amria automated Abattoir located in Alexandria province, Egypt. The examination focused on detecting parasitic infections, following standard parasitological inspection protocols. Macroscopic parasitological inspection was performed to detect Cysticercus cellulosae, Hydatid cyst and Cysticercus tenucollis And the Trichinoscope serves as a rapid and easy to use field inspection tool for detecting Trichinella spiralis cysts, the microscopic form of both C.cellulosae and cysts of Sarcocystis Spp. It was found that T.spiralis was most prevalent parasite in carcass pigs (1.60%) followed by Sarcocystis spp (1.15%), Hydatid cyst and C.tenucollis were (0.45%) and (0.31%) respectively in contrast C.cellulosae was (0.03%).T.spiralis and C.tenucollis showed the highest prevalence during winter while Hydatid cysts and Sarcocystis spp were more common in Autumn, while C.cellulosae was observed in Spring. Viable T.spiralis cyst was more common than calcified cyst. There is distinct morphological and structural characteristics between Hydatid cyst and C.tenucollis. Hydatid cyst was most common in lung but C.tenucollis was most observed in liver. pH in pork infected with Sarcocystis was higher than that infected with Trichinella.