Assessment of parasitic protozoan infestation on commonly consumed raw vegetables and their sources of contamination

Sameer Sood; D.K. Kocher

Volume : VI, Issue : II, February - 2016

Assessment of parasitic protozoan infestation on commonly consumed raw vegetables and their sources of contamination

Sameer Sood, D. K. Kocher

Abstract :

Vegetables are commonly eaten raw or partially cooked and are known to serve as vehicle of human diseases, especially those related with parasitic protozoans. Vegetable samples collected during different seasons from the selected study areas viz; eight vegetable fields, four local vegetable markets and three supermarkets during the year 2015 were processed for extraction of parasitic protozoans (cysts/oocysts/sporozoites). Different sources of contamination (irrigation water, soil and washing water) were also tested to check the transfer of parasitic protozoans through these sources. Incidence of parasitic protozoans on commonly consumed raw vegetables was found to be highest during rainy season (35.18–80.56%) followed by winter (33.33–63.89%) and least during summer season (7.41–43.06%), irrespective of the site of collection. Maximum protozoan contamination of soil (63.41%), irrigation water (75.00%) and washing water (88.89%) was found during rainy season followed by winter (41.46–83.33%) and summer (20.83–72.22%). Vegetable samples collected from local markets showed higher parasitic protozoan infestation (80.56%) during all the seasons in comparison to village fields (64.23%) and supermarkets (35.18%). Leafy vegetables were found to be maximally contaminated (56.86–73.53%) with parasitic protozoans followed by root/modified stem vegetables (11.11–46.67%) and lowest in fruit vegetables (20.37–27.78%).