ABSTRACT
While fish serve as an important source of animal protein for humans, parasitic diseases can have a detrimental effect on their production and public health. The main focus of this study was to quantify the spread of parasitic infections in some freshwater fish and to evaluate the range of zoonotic parasites present in them. In Sohag Governorate, a total of 123 freshwater fish—91 Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and 32 catfish (Clarias gariepinus)—were randomly chosen from natural sources and markets. Fish were examined visually and microscopically. Out of 123 examined fish, 81 were infected by parasites with a prevalence of 66%. Microscopic encysted metacercariae were detected in 46.2% of the total examined fish. In tilapia, the macroscopic EMC clinostomum was 18.7%, and contarcecum 17.6% were observed, while in catfish, trematodes, Orientocreadium batrachoides 12.5% and nematode, paracamalans 3%, were detected. These findings demonstrated a wide range in the prevalence of different zoonotic parasites across two species of fish, highlighting the potential hazards to human health when consuming raw or inadequately cooked fish.
Keywords: Tilapia, Catfish, Microscopy, zoonotic parasites, prevalencevv