Cockroaches as Carriers of pathogenic Entamoeba species: Molecular detection

Cockroaches act as mechanical carriers of parasites. This study covers an important gap in scien¬tific research about the crucial role of cockroaches in the spread of parasites in Duhok City- Iraq, where such distinctions have not been thoroughly explored. This research is focused on distinguishing pathogenic species of Entamoeba from non-pathogenic ones that cockroaches transmit.150 cockroaches in total were caught. Cockroaches went through several procedures in the lab. They were initially washed in a saturated salt solution, then rinsed with 70% alcohol, dried, and then dissected to look for endoparasites. Of these, 19.33% were reported as positive for the Entamoeba genus via microscopic examination. To distinguish between the pathogenic (Entamoeba histolytica) and non-pathogenic Entamoeba parasites, Nested PCR was performed on suspected samples. According to the findings, 16.66% of the cockroaches were infested with non-pathogenic Entamoeba species, whereas 2.66% of the overall cockroaches were infested with the pathogenic type (E. histolytica). About the cockroach infestation site, 0.66% of E. histolytica infections occurred on the cockroaches’ external surface, 1.33% on their internal organs, and 0.66% on both surfaces. According to these results, cockroaches may act as carriers of the pathogenic E. genus.