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Cyclospora cayetanensis is a food- and water- borne parasite that causes cyclosporiasis, an enteric disease, in humans. It is endemic in tropical and subtropical regions, and outside of endemic areas C. cayetanensis has been responsible for many global outbreaks including in Canada. The objectives of this thesis were to estimate the global prevalence of C. cayetanensis in water and to estimate the number of cyclosporiasis cases in Canada from imported raspberries. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted on the prevalence of C. cayetanensis in different water sources which estimated a global prevalence of 6.9% (I2 = 84.38%). The second study was a quantitative microbial risk assessment that estimated an average of 370 cases of cyclosporiasis per year in Canada as a result of consuming imported raspberries. This research presents baseline data on the prevalence of C. cayetanensis and introduces a tool to estimate the risk of cyclosporiasis in Canada. Food from Thought, Canada First Research Excellence Fund |
