Mussels on California Coast contaminated with giardia transmitted from land-based sources

(American Society for Microbiology) The pathogen Giardia duodenalis is present in mussels from freshwater run-off sites and from areas where California Sea Lions lounge along the coast of California, according to a team of researchers from the University of California, Davis. One of the G. duodenalis strains found is known to infect humans; the two others occur mostly in dogs and other canids. 'Thus, the detection of these assemblages implies a potential public health risk if consuming fecally contaminated water or uncooked shellfish,' says coauthor Woutrina Smith.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - Category: Biology Source Type: news