J. BLASZKOWSKA
Department of Medical Biology and Parasitology, Medical University of Lodz, Kosciuszki Street 85, 90-436 Lodz, Poland
Summary
Pregnant BALB/C mice were given intraperitoneally a daily dose of 0.02-0.1g of Ascaris
a-chymotrypsin inhibitor or 0.4-1.2 g of Ascaris homogenate proteins per kg body weight from 8 until 12 day of gestation. The a-chymotrypsin inhibitor was obtained from the cuticle and muscles of Ascaris suum. Fetal examinations were performed on day 19 of pregnancy (internal organs and skeleton). It was shown that administration of the a-chymotrypsin inhibitor or Ascaris homogenate at a late stage of organogenesis disturbed prenatal development of mouse fetuses. All doses of these Ascaris preparations significantly decreased the number of live fetuses per litter, increased the number of fetal resorptions, produced a delay in ossification of skeleton and induced pathological changes of fetal organs and tissues. Teratogenic effects of a-chymotrypsin inhibitor and the homogenate were apparent particularly in fetuses after higher doses of these Ascaris preparations. The most frequent congenital malfor- mations were: cleft palate, fusion of ribs, myelomeningocele and craniomeningocele. No malformations were noted in control groups and after injection of minimum dose of Ascaris homogenate proteins and the inhibitor. The symptoms that occurred after administration of the highest doses of the both Ascaris preparations to pregnant mice included: decreased body weight gain (p<0.001) as compared to controls, vaginal hemorrhage, intrauterine resorption of fetuses, abortions and mortality. These signs suggest that both Ascaris homogenate and a-chymotryp- sin inhibitor cause maternal toxicity.HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 235-239, 1999 Seroepidemiological survey of Trichinella spiralis infection in central China
J. Cui, Z. Q. Wang, W. Zhu*, R. G. Zhang
Department of Zoology, *Department of Medical Statistic, Henan Medical University, Zhengzhou 450052, P. R. China
Summary
A community-based seroepidemiological survey of Trichinella spiralis infection in humans was carried out in 5 villages in Henan Province, central China. Finger-prick blood samples were collected from 2441 individuals aged more than two years. Anti-Trichinella antibodies for immunoglobulin G (IgG) were detected by indirect fluorescentat antibody (IFA) test using frozen sections of the larvae as antigen. The overall seroprevalence was 4.9 %. Seropositivity tended to increase with age ranging from 1.9 % in children under 7 years of age to 7.8 % in those over 45 years old. Seroprevalences did not differ significantly between males and females, and among different professional individuals, but increased with educational levels, and related with the use of one set of tableware for cooked food and raw meat. The results demonstrated that there was a high prevalence of Trichinella infection in central China, and the inspection of meat for Trichinella larvae and health education should be carried out in this region.
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 241-249, 1999
The importance of contaminated pastures and litter in stables for the infection with nematodes of family Strongylidae in horses on studfarm XaverovI. LANGROVA
Section of Parasitology, Department of Zoology and Fishery, Czech University of Agriculture, Kamycka 129, Prague 6 - Suchdol, 165 21, Czech Republic. Phone:(+420 2)24382673; Fax: (+420 2)2092 0310; email: langrova@af.czu.cz
Summary
On the studfarm Xaverov, an epidemiological study on strongyles in horses was conducted from January to December over one grazing season. The infectivity of pasture was the highest in July and October. The highest levels of stable infectivity, mean maximum contamination was found in November - 7720 L3/kg of litter. Spearman's correlation analysis confirmed the closest relationship between the level of litter infectivity (L3/ kg of litter) and EPG by stabled horses. By analysing the parameters which probably influence the pasture infectivity it was found that the closest link was between the indices of the real pasture loading (number of excreted eggs per hectare of pasture times number of the days the herd spent on pasture) and the investigated L3/kg of grass. According to the results of Spearman's correlation analysis, the closest link was found between EPG by horses and the indices of the risk of infecting a horse in a box stall (L3/kg of litter and the time spent on infected litter times the level of infection of that particular litter). A weaker link was found between EPG by horses and the indices of the infectivity of the pastures (P = 0.001).
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 251-260, 1999
Parasitic infections of European eel ( Anguilla anguilla L.) in the NetherlandsF. H. M. Borgsteede*, O. L. M. Haenen, J. de Bree, O. I. Lisitsina1
DLO-Institute for Animal Science and Health (ID-LELYSTAD), P.O. Box 65, 8200 AB Lelystad, the Netherlands, *corresponding author: E-mail: f.h.m.borgsteede@id.wag-ur.nl; 1Institute of Zoology UAS, 15 B. Khmelnitsky st., Kiev 30, 252601 Ukraine
Summary
The parasitic fauna of 361 European eels (Anguilla anguilla L.) from the Netherlands was studied. The eels were caught on four different locations (three freshwater: North IJsselmeer, South IJsselmeer, Markermeer and one brackish: Volkerak) to study geographical differences and on two different dates (May-June 1993 versus September-November 1993) to look for seasonal patterns. The parasite species that were found and the percentage of positive eels were as follows: Protozoa: Myxidium spp. (32.7 %), Trematoda, Monogenea: Pseudodactylogyrus anguillae (29.9%), Gyrodactylus spp. (0.3 %), Trematoda, Digenea: Sphaerostoma bramae (0.3 %), Cestoda: Proteocephalus macrocephalus (4.7 %), Both- riocephalus claviceps (4.2 %), Acanthocephala: Acanthocephalus clavula (48.5 %), Echinorhynchus borealis (0.3 %), Copepoda: Ergasilus gibbus (4.4 %). Data for Anguillicola crassus will be presented separately. Statistical analysis demonstrated a significant interaction for the prevalence of Myxidium spp. (P<0.05), P. anguillae (P<0.01) and A. clavula (P<0.05) between time of sampling and location. Geographical differences were obvious between the Volkerak and the other three locations with respect to the prevalence of P. anguillae (57.1 % in the Volkerak, 19.8 % others), E. gibbus (15.3 % in the Volkerak, 0.4 % others) and B. claviceps which was exclusively found in the Volkerak (15.3 %), but not on the other locations. No clear geographical differences were seen for the other parasites. Seasonal differences were observed in Myxidium infections in North and South IJsselmeer, were the infection percentage decreased from resp. 57.1 % and 100 % in May to 2.0 % and 38.0 % in November. No E. gibbus was found in the June sampling of the Volkerak, but in September 30.0 % of the eels were infected.
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 261-267, 1999
New data on acanthocephalans of the genus Plagiorhynchus Lühe, 1911 (Palaeacanthocephala, Polymorphida, Plagiorhynchidae) from birds in BulgariaZ. M. DIMITROVA, B. B. GEORGIEV1, T. GENOV1
Department of Biology, Faculty of Agriculture, Thracian University, Student Campus, 6000 Stara Zagora, Bulgaria; 1Central Laboratory of General Ecology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 2 Gagarin Street, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria, E-mail: bbg@ecolab.bas.bg
Summary
Three species of the genus Plagiorhynchus were recorded from birds in Bulgaria: Plagiorhynchus (P.) charadriicola (Dollfus, 1953) from Charadrius alexandrinus (L.); P. (P.) charadria (Yamaguti, 1939) from Haematopus ostralegus L. (new host record) and P. (Prosthorhynchus) cylindraceus (Goeze,1782) from Vanellus vanellus (L.), Charadrius dubius (Scop.), Picoides major (L.) (new host record), Turdus merula L., Muscicapa striata (Pallas), Sturnus vulgaris L., Corvus monedula L. and C. frugilegus L. New geographical records for Bulgaria are those of P. charadriicola and P. charadrii . The species are described and figured on the basis of Bulgarian specimens. An anomaly in the number of testes (four testes arranged in two pairs) was observed in two specimens of P. charadriicola. The validity of the genus Prosthorhynchus Kostylew, 1915 is briefly discussed.
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 269-273, 1999
Gynandry in Hokkaidocephala Tenora, Gulyaev, Kamiya, 1999 (Anoplocephalidae, Cestoda) parasitizing Rodentia in JapanF. TENORA, S. GANZORIG1, B. KOUBKOVÁ2, M. KAMIYA1
Department of Zoology, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry, Zemedelska 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic; 1Laboratory of Parasitology, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 060, Japan; 2Department of Zoology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlarska 2, 611 37 Brno, Czech Republic
Summary
The study documents, for the first time, the presence of gynandry in the latest described tapeworm genus of the family Anoplocephalidae, namely the genus Hokkaidocephala Tenora, Gulyaev, Kamiya, 1999. It was confirmed that the gynandry is characteristic for two species of this genus, Hokkaidocephala apodemi (Iwaki, Tenora, Abe, Oku, Kamiya, 1994) and Hokkaidocephala sp. Both cestode species are characterized by the fact that the female reproductive system matures earlier than the male system, and the ovaries and vitelline glands are resorbed earlier than the testes. The type of uterus and its development was also different from the other genera of Anoplocephalidae. Based on this complex of features, the genus Hokkaidocephala can be easily distinguished from the related genera such as Anoplocephaloides, Paranoplocephala , Andrya, Aprostatandrya and Parandrya. It is conceivable that genus Hokkaidocephala is of different lineage in subfamily Anoplocephalinae. The tapeworms of this genus, till this time, are known as the parasite of the genus Apodemus (Rodentia) in Japan.
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 275-282, 1999
Variability and systematic status of some species of the trematodes of genus Pachytrema (Pachytrematidae) parasitizing in fish-eating birdsJ. Sitko
Comenius Museum, Moravian Ornithological Station, Horni nam. 1, 751 52 Prerov, Czech Republic
Summary
The morphometrical variability of Pachytrema calculus Looss, 1907 from Larus ridibundus, Podiceps nigricollis, Tringa nebularia and Chlidonias niger, Pachytrema paniceum Bringmann, 1942 from Larus ridibundus, Pachytrema compositum Tscherbowitsch, 1946 from Ster- na hirundo in the Czech Republic, Pachytrema sangui- neum (Linton, 1928) from Larus atricilla in Cuba, and Pachytrema magnum Travassos, 1921 from Thallasseus magnus in Brazil was studied. Pachytrema magnum, Pachytrema paniceum and Pa- chytrema sanguineum are considered to be junior synonyms of Pachytrema calculus. Pachytrema compositum from Sterna hirundo differs from the foregoing species in a distinctly smaller size of eggs (0.080 x 0.040 for Pachytrema compositum against 0.114 x 0.054 for above mentioned spesies).
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 283-2, 1999
Research noteMicroelement contents in males and females of Anguillicola crassus (Nematoda: Dracunculoidea)
V. BARUS, F. TENORA1, S. KRACMAR1, M. PROKES, J. DVORACEK2
Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Květná 8, 603 65 Brno, Czech Republic; 1Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic; 2Institute for Service and Business, Department of Ecology and Chemistry, 679 01 Skalice nad Svitavou, Czech Republic
Summary
In the body biomass of Anguillicola crassus, males and females, five microelements (Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu, Co) were determined by the atomic absorption spectrometry. In the mean content values of individual elements, significant quantitative differences between both sexes of the swimbladder nematode were found. These differences were well related with the hematophagy of the parasite males and females.
HELMINTHOLOGIA, 36, 4: 287-2, 1999
Research noteParasitic nematodes of Apodemus alpicola (Mammalia: Rodentia: Muridae) collected in Switzerland
M. Asakawa, e. Bertouille*, B. A. Reutter*, P. Vogel*
School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu, Hokkaido 069, Japan; *Institute of Ecology, Building of Biology, University of Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Summary
An analysis was made of the parasitic nematode fauna of the gastrointestinal tract of Apodemus alpicola collected in Switzerland. Three nematode species, viz., Heligmosomoides polygyrus, Syphacia stroma and Eucoleus gastricus were obtained. Although the parasitic nematode fauna of 10 species of the genus Apodemus in the Eurasian Continent including Switzerland, Taiwan and Japanese Islands have been reported, this is the first record from A. alpicola.