The present study was undertaken to identify potentially immunoreactive proteins of the muscle larvae (ML) and adult stage (Ad) of the nematode Trichinella spiralis Owen, 1835. To identify immunoreactive proteins that are specifically recognised by anti-Trichinella antibodies, ML and Ad crude extracts and their excretory-secretory (E-S) products were subjected to sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and immunoblot with serum samples from pigs experimentally infected with T. spiralis. A total of 18 bands were selected for final identification by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. To further understand the functions of the proteins identified in this study, gene ontology terms were applied. Results showed that the specific antibodies against T. spiralis reacted with protein bands matching heat shock proteins, aminopeptidase, enolase, isocitrate dehydrogenase NADP-dependent, tropomyosin, P49 antigen, serine proteinase, secreted 5'-nucleotidase, antigen targeted by protective antibodies, 53 kDa E-S antigen, putative trypsin and paramyosin. Three proteins common for both adult stage and muscle larvae, including heat shock proteins, enolase and 5'-nucleotidase, might play important role during T. spiralis infection. These proteins are presumably presented to the host immune system and may induce humoral immune response. Thus, these proteins may be potential antigens for early diagnosis and the development of a vaccine against the parasite., Justyna Bien, Wladyslaw Cabaj, Bozena Moskwa., and Obsahuje bibliografii
a1_Neotropical freshwater stingrays (Batoidea: Potamotrygonidae) host a diversity of parasites, including some, like their hosts, that are marine-derived. Among the parasites of potamotrygonids, the cestode fauna is the most diverse, with multiple genera having been reported, including genera endemic to the freshwaters of the Neotropics and genera that have cosmopolitan distributions. Recent efforts have been made to document the diversity of cestodes of this host-parasite system and to refine the taxonomy of parasite lineages. The present study contributes to our knowledge of Rhinebothrium Linton, 1890, a diverse cosmopolitan genus of rhinebothriidean cestode, with 37 species reported from marine batoids, one species from a freshwater stingray in Borneo and six species from potamotrygonids. Rhinebothrium jaimei sp. n. is described from two species of potamotrygonids, Potamotrygon orbignyi (Castelnau) (type host) and Potamotrygon scobina Garman, from Bahía de Marajó of the lower Amazon region. It can be distinguished from most of its marine congeners via multiple attributes, including its possession of two, rather than one, posteriormost loculi on its bothridia and the lomeniform shape of its bothridium that is wider anteriorly. In addition, R. jaimei sp. n. can be distinguished from the six Rhinebothrium species described previously from potamotrygonids based on a unique combination of morphological features. Despite extensive stingray cestode sampling efforts throughout all major Neotropical river systems, we found that unlike most species of potamotrygonid Rhinebothrium species, which are widespread, R. jaimei sp. n. is restricted to the Bahía de Marajó., a2_The discovery of this new species of Rhinebothrium in Bahía de Marajó, an area in which potamotrygonids occur sympatrically with some species of euryhaline batoids (e.g. Dasyatis spp.) and share some trophic resources, suggest that modern ecological processes may be contributing to the distribution patterns of cestodes infecting potamotrygonids., Fernando P. L. Marques, Florian B. Reyda., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Resistance to anthelmintic medication of equid strongyles is a worldwide phenomenon and for this reason systematic investigations of resistant parasite populations are necessary. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the presence and distribution of equid strongyles resistant to the anthelmintics used in Romania, as well as the pre-treatment and post-treatment prevalence of species of strongylid nematodes. The Faecal Egg Count Reduction Test was performed between 2010 and 2013 on a total number of 588 horses and 23 donkeys from 26 locations (subgroups). Animals of the first group (I) consisting of subgroups no. 1-11 were treated with Albendazole (ABZ), those of the second group (II) consisting of subgroups no. 12-23 with Fenbendazole (FBZ), while Ivermectin (IVM) was used on animals of the third group (III) consisting of subgroups no. 24-26. Resistant strongyles have been found in 82% (average lower limit of the 95% confidence interval, LCL95%, was 65) of the total equids from the group treated with ABZ. In the group of horses treated with FBZ, resistant strongyles were identified in 75% of the subgroups (LCL95% = 44). No resistant strongyles have been identified in IVM-treated horse groups (LCL95% = 98). The pre-treatment prevalence of the species of the Strongylinae Müller, 1780 was 22%, whereas that with nematodes of the subfamily Cyathostominae Molin, 1861 78%. Post-treatment reduction of strongyline nematodes was observed (5%), which demonstrates the sensitivity of large strongyles to common anthelmintics. The post-treatment prevalence of cyathostomes was of 95%, which proves their resistance, especially to ABZ- and FBZ-based anthelmintics., Mihai Cernea, Romeo T. Cristina, Laura C. Ştefănuţ, Luís M. Madeira de Carvalho, Marian A. Taulescu, Vasile Cozma., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The consumption of horse meat has been epidemiologically linked to clinical toxoplasmosis in humans and neosporosis that may cause clinical illness in horses. Here we determined seroprevalence of antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908 and species of Neospora Dubey, Carpenter, Speer, Topper et Uggla, 1988 in horses from Italy. Blood samples were collected from 643 apparently healthy horses from 60 farms of 51 municipalities in southern Italy. The presence of antibodies against T. gondii and Neospora spp. were detected by indirect fluorescence antibody test (IFAT); a titre ≥ 50 was considered positive. The same sera were also tested for antibodies against Neospora spp. by a competitive-inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA); samples with ≥ 30% inhibition were considered positive. Antibodies against T. gondii and Neospora spp. were detected in 19 (3.0%) and 15 (2.3%) horses by IFAT, respectively, without statistical difference between gender, age and breeds (p-value ≥ 0.05). Antibodies against species of Neospora were detected in 70 (10.9%) horses by cELISA with statistical difference in gender (6.0-18.5%, p-value ≥ 0.05) and breeds (0-19.4%, p-value ≥ 0.05). Although T. gondii infection rates were low, the risk of human infection should not be dismissed, particularly in Italy where consumption of raw or undercooked horse meat has a long tradition., Eva Bártová, Tereza Machačová, Kamil Sedlák, Marie Budíková, Ugo Mariani, Vincenzo Veneziano., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Helminths often occupy defined niches in the gut of their definitive hosts. In the dioecious acanthocephalans, adult males and females usually have similar gut distributions, but sexual site segregation has been reported in at least some species. We studied the intestinal distribution of the acanthocephalan Echinorhynchus borealis von Linstow, 1901 (syn. of E. cinctulus Porta, 1905) in its definitive host, burbot (Lota lota Linnaeus). Over 80% of female worms were found in the pyloric caeca, whereas the majority of males were in the anterior two-thirds of the intestine. This difference was relatively consistent between individual fish hosts. Worms from different parts of the gut did not differ in length, so site segregation was not obviously related to worm growth or age. We found proportionally more males in the caeca when a larger fraction of the females were found there, suggesting mating opportunities influence gut distribution. However, this result relied on a single parasite infrapopulation and is thus tentative. We discuss how mating strategies and/or sexual differences in life history might explain why males and females occupy different parts of the burbot gut., Arto Tuomainen, E. Tellervo Valtonen, Daniel P. Benesh., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Based on material collected from Rhinella cf. margaritifera (Laurenti) and Rhi. marina (Linnaeus) (Anura: Bufonidae) during a parasite survey of the herpetofauna of French Guiana, updated descriptions of Rhabdias androgyna Kloss, 1971 and R. fuelleborni Travassos, 1926 are presented. In addition to metrical data, which may overlap in closely related species, emphasis is placed on qualitative characters. Rhabdias androgyna is distinguished by the unique presence of an outer and inner cephalic cuticular inflation, a shoulder-like broadening of the body at the anterior end, a wide and shallow buccal capsule (average buccal ratio 0.36) with serrated lumen in apical view, a prominent anterior dilatation of the oesophagus, and the presence of an additional posterior dilatation anterior to the oesophageal bulb. Characters that may help to differentiate R. fuelleborni from closely related species parasitising the Rhi. marina species group are the presence of six relatively uniform lips, and the division of the buccal capsule into an anterior and posterior segment, with differently structured walls. Both the presence of R. androgyna and R. fuelleborni in French Guiana constitute new geographic records. A single specimen of Rhabdias sp. is described from Pristimantis chiastonotus (Lynch et Hoegmood) (Anura: Craugastoridae). This species differs from all its Neotropical congeners by the distinct globular swelling of its head, similar to that seen in only one Palaearctic and one Afrotropical Rhabdias species. A list of species of Rhabdias parasitising amphibians in the Netropical Realm is also provided., Yuriy Kuzmin, Louis H. du Preez, Kerstin Junker., and Obsahuje bibliografii
a1_Based on light and scanning electron microscopical studies, eight species (five adult and three larval) of nematodes belonging to the Ascaridida, Oxyurida and Enoplida were collected from fishes of the Okavango River, Botswana, namely Falcaustra similis Moravec et Van As, 2004, Atractidae gen. sp. (only female) (both Cosmocercoidea), Cucullanus sp. (only female) (Seuratoidea), Cithariniella longicaudata sp. n., Synodontisia annulata sp. n. (both Oxyuroidea), Contracaecum sp. third-stage larvae, third-stage larvae of Galeiceps sp. (both Ascaridoidea) and Eustrongylides sp. fourth-stage larvae (Dioctophymatoidea). The new species Citharinella longicaudata (type host Schilbe intermedius Rüppel) is mainly characterised by the shape and size of cephalic papillae and the spicule 108 µm long, and Synodontisia annulata (type host S. intermedius) by the shape of cephalic papillae, body length of gravid females (4.88-5.33 mm) and a short spicule (66 µm long). The female specimen of Cucullanus sp. from Tilapia sparmanni Smith markedly differs from congeners parasitising inland fishes in Africa by the elongate pseudobuccal capsule and by the excretory pore far posterior to the oesophago-intestinal junction; apparently, it belongs to an undescribed species. Galeiceps larvae parasitising fishes are described for the first time. Cithariniella gonzalezi Van Waerebeke, Chabaud, Bain et Georges, 1988 is considered a junior synonym of C. khalili Petter, Vassiliadès et Troncy, 1972, and the previous records of Cithariniella citharini Khalil, 1964 from Synodontis spp. in Egypt concern, in fact, Cithariniella khalili Petter, Vassiliadès et Troncy, 1972., a2_The specimens of Cithariniella reported by Koubková et al. (2010) from Paradistichodus dimidiatus (Pellegrin) in Senegal and misidentified as C. gonzalesi Van Waerebeke, Chabaud, Bain et Georges, 1988 are considered to represent a new species, C. koubkovae sp. n.; this is established by reference to the description and drawings provided by Koubková et al. (2010)., František Moravec, Liesl L. Van As., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Caligus brevicaudatus Scott, 1901, a common but poorly known species of parasitic copepod, is redescribed from newly collected specimens of both sexes. The new material was collected from the body surface of tub gurnards, Chelidonichthys lucerna (Linnaeus), caught in eastern Mediterranean waters off the Turkish coast. Inadequately described female structures from earlier descriptions are redescribed and illustrated in detail and the male of C. brevicaudatus is described for the first time. The new material of C. brevicaudatus is compared with material collected by A. Scott and stored in the collections of the Natural History Museum, London. In addition, a voucher specimen of Caligus uranoscopi Vaissière, 1955, stored in the collections of the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris is re-examined. Caligus uranoscopi is recognised as a junior subjective synonym of C. brevicaudatus since it does not differ in any substantive characters., İbrahim Demirkale, Argun Akif Özak, Geoffrey Allan Boxshall., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Five new species of Mulcticola Clay et Meinertzhagen, 1938 are described and illustrated from Brazil. These new species and their hosts are: Mulcticola sicki sp. n. from the sand-coloured nighthawk, Chordeiles rupestris rupestris (Spix), Mulcticola bacurau sp. n. from the common pauraque, Nyctidromus albicollis (Gmelin), Mulcticola tendeiroi sp. n. from the long-trained nightjar, Macropsalis forcipata (Nitzsch), Mulcticola piacentinii sp. n. from the short-tailed nighthawk, Lurocalis semitorquatus semitorquatus (Gmelin) (type-host) and L. s. nattereri (Temminck), and Mulcticola parvulus sp. n. from the little nightjar, Setopagis parvula (Gould). These species were compared primarily with Mulcticola nacunda Carriker, 1945 from the nacunda nighthawk, Chordeiles nacunda nacunda (Vieillot), which is one of the species of Mulcticola previously recorded in the Neotropical region. All the five new species described herein differ from their congeners by exclusive characters such as the shape of anterior dorsal head plate, metasternal plate, subvulvar plates in females and genitalia in males. We increased the number of species in Mulcticola to 18 in total, with seven of them now known from the Neotropics. We present the main morphological characters to distinguish Mulcticola from other species of the Philopteridae parasitising Caprimulgiformes and also compile a detailed catalogue for species included in this louse genus., Michel P. Valim, Kamila M. D. Kuabara., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Several studies have investigated the association between infection with Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908), pregnancy and fertility, but the results of studies focused on the fertility are rather ambiguous. Here we report results of four new cross-sectional studies. The studies were performed in the General University Hospital, Prague (study A with n = 1 165, and study C with n = 317), in private clinics of the Centre of Reproductive Medicine, Prague (study B with n = 1 016), and in a population of Czech and Slovak volunteers from the Facebook page 'Guinea Pigs' willing to participate in various basic science studies (study D with n = 524). In studies A and B, the clinical records were used to assess the fertility problems, whereas in studies C and D, the women were asked to rate their fertility problems using a six-point scale. Pregnant T. gondii-infected women were older than T. gondii-free women (study A: 33.1 vs 31.2, P < 0.001; study B: 30.6 vs 29.6, P = 0.012) and more often used assisted reproductive technology to conceive (study A: 17.2% vs 12.4%, P = 0.041; study B: 13.4% vs 9.2%, P = 0.317). Pregnant T. gondii-infected primiparous women were older than T. gondii-free primiparas (study A: 31.1 vs 29.5, P < 0.001; study B: 29.7 vs 28.9, P = 0.064) and more often used assisted reproductive technology to conceive (study A: 24.7% vs 14.4%, P = 0.010; study B: 15.9% vs 15.5%, P = 0.888). T. gondii-infected women reported to take a longer time to conceive than T. gondii-free women (P = 0.015). They also claimed to have more fertility problems than T. gondii-free women (P < 0.0001). Our results suggest that 'asymptomatic' latent toxoplasmosis could be a more serious source of fertility problems and health-associated burden than more severe but far rarer congenital toxoplasmosis., Šárka Kaňková, Jaroslav Flegr, Pavel Calda., and Obsahuje bibliografii