Molecular identification of human echinococcosis in the Altai region of Russia

Abstract Mitochondrial haplotypes were determined for Echinococcus species infecting individuals diagnosed with alveolar echinococcosis (AE) and cystic echinococcosis (CE) at Altai State Medical University Hospital in Barnaul, Russia during 2008 to 2011. The nucleotide sequence of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 ( cox1 ) gene was determined for 31 of 34 AE and 8 of 12 CE cases. All of the AE cases were confirmed to be caused by Asian type Echinococcus multilocularis , while CE cases were caused by Echinococcus granulosus sensu stricto (genotype G1) and Echinococcus canadensis (genotype G6).