Comparative study of cultivation of feces in vermiculite or charcoal to obtain larvae of Strongyloides venezuelensis.

INTRODUCTION We compared feces culturing in charcoal or vermiculite to obtain Strongyloides venezuelensis larvae. METHODS Feces (5 g) from infected rats was mixed with vermiculite (10 g) or coal (10 g) in plastic cups and incubated at 28°C for 48 h. Larvae were recovered using Baermann-Moraes method. RESULTS Significantly higher number of positive larval cultures were recovered from vermiculite than from charcoal (15/17 and 4/17, respectively; p < 0.001; 990.6 ± 307.5 and 215 ± 78.1 larvae, p = 0.027). CONCLUSIONS Vermiculite yields more larvae and provides cleaner pellets, improving larvae identification and facilitating their use for other purposes.