S J Trop Med Parasitol. 2018;41(2):15-20. RESEARCH STRAY ANIMALS (DOGS AND CATS) AS SOURCES OF SOIL-TRANSMITTED PARASITE EGGS/CYSTS IN TEMPLE GROUNDS OF BANGKOK METROPOLITAN, THAILAND Nongnuch Pinyopanuwat 1 , Chanya Kengradomkij 1 , Ketsarin Kamyingkird 1 , Wissanuwat Chimnoi 1 , Duangkhamol Suraruangchai 2 , Tawin Inpankaew 1* 1 Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand 2 Merial (Thailand) Ltd. ABSTRACT oil contaminated with helminth eggs, larvae and protozoan cysts is a potential source of infection and poses a threat to the public, especially to young children spending their time on the playgrounds. The present study determines the prevalence of soil-transmitted parasite eggs/ cysts in soil samples from temple grounds in 50 districts of Bangkok Metropolitan, Thailand. Nine hundred and fifty soil samples from 95 temple grounds (10 samples per temple) were examined for infection intensity using egg/cyst counts per 50 gram of soil sample using the double centrifugal flotation technique. Soil samples from 42 districts (84.0%) were found to be contaminated with eggs from eight nematode genera, two nematode larvae and coccidian cysts. The highest prevalence for parasite eggs was Toxocara eggs (64.0%) followed by Ancylostoma eggs (36.0%) and Spirocerca eggs (30.0%). The presence of Toxocara, Ancylostoma and Trichuris eggs in soil samples highlights the risk of transmission to the human population, especially monks, nuns and children who live nearby the temple. Keywords: soil-transmitted parasite, dogs, cats, zoonoses, temple, Bangkok, Thailand *Corresponding author: Tawin Inpankaew, Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand. Tel & Fax.: +6629428438 E-mail address: fvettwi@ku.ac.th INTRODUCTION Soil is an important source for transmission of various human and animal pathogens including soil-transmitted parasites, such as roundworm, hookworm, whipworm and threadworm. Almost 900 million people were infected with roundworm and more than 400 million were infected with hookworm and whipworm (Pullen et al., 2014; Collender et al., 2015). Stray dogs and cats had been traditionally left at the temples based on the belief that monks and nuns can look after them and feed them. Therefore, their faeces are potential sources of soil-transmitted helminth eggs and protozoan cysts posing a threat to public health. The potential role of stray dogs and cats as reservoir for zoonotic diseases has been recognized as a significant public health concern worldwide. They release helminth eggs to the ground where THE JOURNAL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AND PARASITOLOGY 15 Vol. 41 (No. 1-2) June-December 2018