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A parasite that ordinarily hold out in the lungs of rats can taint the human brain if accidentally ingested in contaminated food — and now , the worm has take unexampled dominion in Georgia .
But do n’t freak out .
Rat lungworms normally live in rat lungs, but their larvae, as seen here, can infect humans if accidentally eaten.
The parasite , called rotter lungworm ( Angiostrongylus cantonensis ) , mostly infects citizenry in Southeast Asia and is alsoendemicto Hawaii and the Pacific Islands . weigh trespassing in the continental U.S. , the worm probably first reached the southeast part of the nation in the 1980s throughrats arrive to New Orleans , Louisiana on swop ship . Since then , sporadic human cases of the infection have been reported in various states , includingTexas , Tennessee and Alabama .
Now , in a written report conducted between 2019 and 2022 , research worker have uncovered lungworm in chocolate-brown lowlife ( Rattus norvegicus ) in Atlanta , Georgia .
" BecauseA. cantonensislungworm antecedently was identified in rats in neighboring states Florida and Alabama , A. cantonensispopulations probably were in Georgia much in the first place than 2019 , when the first positive scum bag was identified in Atlanta , " the investigator wrote in a report issue inEmerging infective Diseases , a daybook published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) . This " propose that this zoonotic sponger was insert to and has become launch in a new region of the southeastern United States . "
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The team analyze tissues from 33 browned skunk found dead at a zoological facility in Atlanta between 2019 and 2022 . Of the skunk , seven , or about 21 % , had nematode worm in their hearts , pulmonary artery and brainiac tissues . A inherited analysis confirmed thatA. cantonensiswas in four of these louse - ridden samples , and the genetical successiveness perfectly fit those of lungworms previously collected in Louisiana .
The remain rats ' worm could not be identified due to " insufficient sample quality and DNA abasement , " the researchers notice . Because of that , other worm species could n’t be ruled out , but the rats did tolerate injuries indicative ofA. cantonensisinfections .
How can rat lungworms get into world ? The adult sponger live in rat lungs and only infect strikebreaker , but rats can top the larva of the leech in their poop , according to the CDC . Snails and slugs can then become infected by eating the larva , and by eating raw or undercooked snails or clout , citizenry can get infected in twist .
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" People also can get infected by accident , by eating raw produce ( such as lettuce ) that contain a small snail or stagnate or part of one , " the CDC caution . extra fauna , such freshwater half-pint , crabs and anuran , can also be infect with the larvae and it ’s possible that eating these animals raw or undercooked could pose a peril to humans , but that ’s not well ground .
Once in a person , the insect can cause a rare mentality transmission called eosinophilic meningitis , whose symptom can include headache , buckram neck , tingling or irritating feelings in the cutis , blue - grade fever , sickness and vomiting .
" Most infections ofA. cantonensisresolve ad libitum over time without specific treatment because the parasite can not survive for long in the human body , " the CDC notes . " However , serious complications can rarely occur , take to neurologic disfunction or death . "
The full news is that you may avoid this contagion by being aware of where lungworms live and not ingesting raw or undercooked snail , slug , fresh water half-pint , solid ground crabs , frogs or supervise lizards or potentially contaminated veggies or succus , the CDC advises . veggie should be good wash off if eaten raw .
This article is for informational purposes only and is not intend to offer aesculapian advice .
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