Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples

Mesut Akıl; Sena Erkınay; Hakkı Seçkin Çetin; Mehmet Aykur; Sefa Mülayim; Mehmet Karakuş; Muhammet Karakavuk; Tuncer Özekinci; Esra Koçoğlu

doi:10.33988/auvfd.2013728

Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples

Abstract

Monitoring gastrointestinal parasites of stray dogs is important for both animal and public health within the One Health framework. In regions endemic for zoonotic parasites such as Echinococcus spp., international biosafety guidelines recommend freezing canine fecal samples at -80 °C to prevent laboratory-acquired infections. However, the diagnostic performance of different methods applied to samples subjected to this biosafety procedure has not been sufficiently investigated. This study evaluated gastrointestinal parasites in stray dogs from the Anatolian side of İstanbul and compared the detection performance of saline-iodine wet mount microscopy and the formalin-ethyl acetate concentration technique (FECT) in fecal samples frozen at -80 °C. A total of 110 fecal samples from stray dogs admitted to shelters and veterinary clinics in seven districts were examined. Overall, gastrointestinal parasites were detected in 22 (20.0%) samples. Six taxa were identified, including Toxocara canis (8.2%), Cystoisospora spp. (7.3%), hookworms (5.5%), Trichuris vulpis (1.8%), taeniid eggs (1.8%), and Dipylidium caninum (1.8%). Coinfections were observed in 4.5% of the dogs. FECT detected more hookworm and taeniid eggs, whereas wet mount microscopy identified more Cystoisospora spp. oocysts and slightly more T. canis eggs. No statistically significant differences in parasite detection were observed between the two methods (P>0.05). The percentage agreement between methods ranged from 95.5% to 100%. These findings indicate that stray dogs in İstanbul continue to harbor parasites of zoonotic and veterinary importance. Both methods enabled the detection of parasite stages in fecal samples frozen at -80 °C, suggesting that they may provide complementary diagnostic information for the screening of frozen field samples.

Keywords

Project Number

T-GAP-2022-1753

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Veterinary Parasitology

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Mesut Akıl ^*
0000-0002-0147-1731
Türkiye

Sena Erkınay
0000-0002-2171-2491
Türkiye

Hakkı Seçkin Çetin
0000-0002-6246-3938
Türkiye

Mehmet Aykur
0000-0002-6100-1037
Türkiye

Sefa Mülayim This is me
0000-0002-2671-5624
United Kingdom

Mehmet Karakuş
0000-0002-9460-1215
Türkiye

Muhammet Karakavuk
0000-0002-2468-5564
Türkiye

Tuncer Özekinci
0000-0003-3475-660X
Türkiye

Esra Koçoğlu
0000-0002-2860-1794
Türkiye

Early Pub Date

October 21, 2026

Publication Date

-

Submission Date

August 11, 2026

Acceptance Date

October 10, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Number: Advanced Online Publication

DOI

https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2013728

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA82XZ88JG

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Akıl, M., Erkınay, S., Çetin, H. S., Aykur, M., Mülayim, S., Karakuş, M., Karakavuk, M., Özekinci, T., & Koçoğlu, E. (2026). Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi, Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2013728

AMA

1.Akıl M, Erkınay S, Çetin HS, et al. Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples. Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg. 2026;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.33988/auvfd.2013728

Chicago

Akıl, Mesut, Sena Erkınay, Hakkı Seçkin Çetin, et al. 2026. “Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Parasites in Dogs from İstanbul: Comparative Analysis of Wet Mount Microscopy and Concentration Technique in -80 °C Frozen Fecal Samples”. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi, no. Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2013728.

EndNote

Akıl M, Erkınay S, Çetin HS, Aykur M, Mülayim S, Karakuş M, Karakavuk M, Özekinci T, Koçoğlu E (October 1, 2026) Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi Advanced Online Publication

IEEE

[1]M. Akıl et al., “Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples”, Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg, no. Advanced Online Publication, Oct. 2026, doi: 10.33988/auvfd.2013728.

ISNAD

Akıl, Mesut - Erkınay, Sena - Çetin, Hakkı Seçkin - Aykur, Mehmet - Mülayim, Sefa - Karakuş, Mehmet - Karakavuk, Muhammet - Özekinci, Tuncer - Koçoğlu, Esra. “Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Parasites in Dogs from İstanbul: Comparative Analysis of Wet Mount Microscopy and Concentration Technique in -80 °C Frozen Fecal Samples”. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi. Advanced Online Publication (October 1, 2026). https://doi.org/10.33988/auvfd.2013728.

JAMA

1.Akıl M, Erkınay S, Çetin HS, Aykur M, Mülayim S, Karakuş M, Karakavuk M, Özekinci T, Koçoğlu E. Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples. Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg. 2026. doi:10.33988/auvfd.2013728.

MLA

Akıl, Mesut, et al. “Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Parasites in Dogs from İstanbul: Comparative Analysis of Wet Mount Microscopy and Concentration Technique in -80 °C Frozen Fecal Samples”. Ankara Üniversitesi Veteriner Fakültesi Dergisi, no. Advanced Online Publication, Oct. 2026, doi:10.33988/auvfd.2013728.

Vancouver

1.Mesut Akıl, Sena Erkınay, Hakkı Seçkin Çetin, Mehmet Aykur, Sefa Mülayim, Mehmet Karakuş, Muhammet Karakavuk, Tuncer Özekinci, Esra Koçoğlu. Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in dogs from İstanbul: Comparative analysis of wet mount microscopy and concentration technique in -80 °C frozen fecal samples. Ankara Univ Vet Fak Derg. 2026 Oct. 1;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.33988/auvfd.2013728