First report of infection with metacestode stages of Echinococcus multilocularis in a kulan (Equus hemionus kulan) from Slovakia

While the principle definitive host of the zoonotic cestode Echinococcus multilocularis in Europe is the red fox, several rodent species act as main intermediate hosts. Among others, e.g., humans, dogs, and pigs, also horses have been described to act as aberrant hosts in highly endemic regions. Here, a case of an E. multilocularis infection in a kulan (Equus hemionus kulan) is described. The five years old kulan from a zoo in Slovakia was transported to an animal park in Germany. The animal had to be euthanized within a few weeks after the import due to its poor general state of health. The pathological examination revealed a nodular mass in the liver as an incidental finding. By histological examination of the mass, a pyogranulomatous and necrotizing inflammation and intralesional fragments of amorphous eosinophil layers were detected. The suspected diagnosis of E. multilocularis infection was confirmed by PCR addressing parts of the genes 12S rRNA and the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2, showing very high identities with isolates from France, Slovakia and the USA.