Risk of human infection with Giardia duodenalis from cats in Japan and genotyping of the isolates to assess the route of infection in cats

The number of facilities in which customers make contact with cats before eating and drinking, called 'cat cafes', has recently increased in Tokyo, Japan. In a survey to clarify the possibility of zoonotic transmission in Giardia duodenalis, the infection rates of G. duodenalis in 321 stool samples of cats from 16 cat cafes, 31 pet shops, and the Animal Care and Consultation Center of Tokyo were 19.1% (22/115), 1.2% (1/85), and 2.5% (3/121), respectively. In the molecular analysis of 26 G. duodenalis isolates, 6 samples from 2 cat cafes belonged to the zoonotic genotype assemblage A I, and 20 other samples were of assemblage F. Moreover, phylogenetic analysis of glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) and triosephosphate isomerase (TPI) genes of the 20 assemblage F isolates revealed 2 major lineages. The 6 assemblage A isolates belonged to the same cluster with regard to the GDH gene; however, 2 of the 6 isolates belonged to a different cluster from the other 4 isolates with regard to the TPI gene. Therefore, a risk of transmission from cats to humans is suggested because of the detection of zoonotic Giardia genotypes in cat cafes.