Infectivity of Trichinella spp. recovered from decaying mouse and fox muscle tissue

The tolerance to degradation processes in meat of nine Trichinella genotype s was studied in mouse and fox tissue, respectively. Minced muscle tissue w ith Trichinella larvae of different age was stored at room temperature at 1 00 % relative humidity. During storage weekly sub samples of the minced mea t were digested and released larvae were inoculated in mice to evaluate the Reproductive Capacity Index (RCI). The RCI decreased with the length of st orage, but the larvae from older infections appeared better adopted to tole rate the degradation processes. The African species T. nelsoni had a relati ve higher tolerance to elevated temperature during storage and the unencyst ed species T pseudospiralis was the most vulnerable genotype.