Just nineteen species of ectoparasitic helminths were found in a survey of over 1,500 individuals of 26 species of sillaginid fishes in the Indo-west Pacific, A twentieth worm is known only from the literature; a twenty-first, also known only from the literature, is considered a doubtful record. Fifteen of the twenty worms are branchial monogeneans, one is a monoge-nean of the pharyngeal plates, one is an ectoparasitic digenean living under the scales, and three are leeches of the mouth cavity and fins. The most common monogeneans were diplectanids (Diplectanum spp. and Monoplectanum spp.) and microcotylids (Polylabris spp.), each with five recently described or redescribed species. Of the remaining monogeneans, three were extremely rare, and two were uncommon. Pseudnbivagina sp. and Polynemicola sp. (Microcotylidae) and Pseudempleurosoma sp. (Ancyrocephalidae) were represented by only a single worm each from three different hosts (Sillago robusta, S. sihama, and S. ingenuua, respectively). The gyrodactylid Gyrodactylus sp, is widespread and was recorded from four species of sillaginids (S. ciliata, S. japonica, S. schomburgkii and S. sihama). Encolyllabe chirrmemi Robinson (Capsalidae) is recorded for the first time from sillaginids, but only on S. aeolus.'Tv/o additional monogeneans are known from sillaginids only in the literature: Dacty-logyrus sp, (Dactylogyridae) is known only from cultured S. sihama', the single specimen of Microcotyle sp. (Microcotylidae) recorded from Sillaginodes punctata is probably a contaminant, since the haptor was missing. The generalist trematode Trans-versolrema Ucinum Manter (Transversotrematidae) was found for the first time in samples of four species of sillaginids (Sillago analis, S. ingenuua, S. lutea and 5. sihama). Three species of piscicolid leeches were encountered: Austrohdella translucens Badham was common on the fins of three large inshore sillaginids (S. ciliata, S. schomburgkii and S. analis); a single specimen of the generalist species Zeylanicobdella arugamensis De Silva was recovered from S. soringa·, and specimens of Z. stellata (Moore) infected S. schomburgkii and S. analis. The diversity of host-specific worms in Sillaginidae is low compared with those of some other Indo-west Pacific fishes.
The present paper comprises a systematic survey of helminths from 202 red groupers, Epinephelus morio (Valenciennes) (Pisces: Serranidae), the most important commercial marine fish in the region, collected from ten localities off the Yucatan Peninsula in the Gulf of Mexico during 1994-1996; two more helminth species were recorded from E. morio earlier. Thirty species of helminths were found: Monogenea 1, Cestoda 3, Trematoda 17, Nematoda 8, Acanthocephala 1. Of them, 15 species were adults, whereas 15 species were larval stages parasitizing piscivorous elasmobranch and teleostean fishes, birds and marine mammals as adults. A new didymozoid trematode, Allonematohnlhrium yucatanense sp. n., is described from the fins of this host. Most findings represent new host- and geographical records. Philometra margolisi, a nematode parasitizing the gonads, is undoubtedly the most important parasite affecting the reproduction of the host, endangering E. morio in aquaculture. Larval anisakid nematodes (Anisakis, Pseudoterranova, Hysterothylacium) recorded from the red grouper in the region of the southern Gulf of Mexico are important from the viewpoint of public health.
Parasitological examinations of 102 specimens of the lesser great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis (Blumenbach) from two nesting regions in the Czech Republic (South Bohemia and South Moravia) were carried out at the Institute of Parasitology, Czech Academy of Sciences (previously the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences) in the years 1987-1992. In them, a total of 19 species of helminth parasites was found, including Trematoda (11 species), Cestoda (2), Nematoda (4) and Acanthocephala (2), which can be divided into three main groups regarding their host specificity: parasites specific for cormorants (Phalacrocorax spp.) (37%), those parasitic mainly in cormorants (16%) and non-specific parasites (47%). Of the 19 species recorded, 100% were found in South Moravia, but only 47% of these 19 species in South Bohemia. The higher number of helminth species in cormorants from South Moravia and a higher proportion of non-specific species may be associated with the presence of the large Nové Mlýny water reservoir, in addition to better ecological and environmental conditions in this warmer region. Scanning electron microscopical examination of three common nematode species parasitising cormorants, Contracaecum rudolphii Hartwich, 1964, Desmidocercella incognita Solonitsin, 1932 and Syncuaria squamata (von Linstow, 1883), revealed some taxonomically important, previously unreported morphological features, such as the cephalic structures, numbers and distribution of male caudal papillae or the shapes of spicules., František Moravec, Tomáš Scholz., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Examinations of 29 specimens of the catfish Liobagrus reini Hilgendorf (Siluriformes: Amblycipitidae), a species endemic to Japan, collected from the Sho River, Toyama Prefecture, in central Honshu, revealed the presence of four species of helminth parasites: Plagioporus honshuensis sp. n. (Trematoda), Rhabdochona coronacauda Belouss, 1965, H. japonica Moravec, 1975 and Mexiconema liobagri sp. n. (all Nematoda). The new opccoelid trematode P. honshuensis is characterized mainly by the extent of vitelline follicles, the size ratio of the suckers (1 : 1.7-2.1), the situation of testes near the middle of the body and by the structure, size and shape of the cirrus sac. Allopodocotyle Pritchard, 1966 is considered a junior synonym of Plagioporus Stafford, 1904. The males of R. japonica are described for the first time and conspeciftc females are redescribed; this species is a specific parasite of L. reini. The principle hosts of R. coronacauda are cyprinids and, therefore, its finding in the catfish may indicate an accidental infection; L. reini represents a new host record. M. liobagri (only females were found) from the host’s abdominal cavily is the second known species of this dracunculoid genus, being characterized by the position of the excretory pore and the number (1) of caudal processes in the female. The recorded helminths are briefly described and illustrated and problems of their systematic status are discussed.
Several members of the TGF-ß family are known to effectively regulate the fate of hematopoietic progenitor cells in a complex and context-dependent manner. Growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF15) is a divergent member of the TGF-ß family. This stress-induced cytokine has been proposed to possess immunomodulatory functions and its high expression is often associated with progression of a variety of pathological conditions. GDF15 is also induced by chemotherapy and irradiation. Very few fundamental studies have been published regarding the effect of GDF15 in hematopoiesis. In this study, we analyzed the hematological status of untreated and γ-irradiated mice deficient for GDF15 as a result of genetic knock-out (KO), in order to clarify the regulatory role of GDF15 in hematopoiesis. Significant differences between GDF15 KO mice and their pertinent WT controls were found in the parameters of blood monocyte numbers, blood platelet size, and distribution width, as well as in the values of bone marrow granulocyte/macrophage progenitor cells. Different tendencies of some hematological parameters in the GDF15 KO mice in normal conditions and those under exposure of the mice to ionizing radiation were registered. These findings are discussed in the context of the GDF15 gene function and its lack under conditions of radiation-induced damage., M. Hofer, Z. Hoferová, J. Remšík, M. Nováková, J. Procházková, R. Fedr, J. Kohoutek, L. Dušek, A. Hampl, K. Souček., and Obsahuje bibliografii
We investigated hematopoiesis in untreated and ionizing radiation-exposed cyclooxygenase-2-deficient (COX-2 KO) mice. We performed a complex hematological analysis of 16 parameters in untreated COX-2 KO male mice or COX-2 KO male mice irradiated with the dose of 4 Gy of γ-rays and their wildtype littermates. At baseline, hematopoiesis was increased in COX-2-deficient mice, but attenuated by irradation in COX-2- deficient mice compared to wildtype. To conclude, the antiinflammatory action of the COX-2 genetic disruption plays a positive role in hematopoiesis under basal conditions but is detrimental following radiation exposure., M. Hofer, Z. Hoferová L. Dušek, K. Souček, A. Gruzdev., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The purpose of the study was to describe and compare normal and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)-suppressed hematopoiesis in adenosine A3 receptor knock-out (A3AR KO) mice and their wild-type (WT) counterparts. To meet the purpose, a complex hematological analysis comprising nineteen peripheral blood and bone marrow parameters was performed in the mice. Defects previously observed in the peripheral blood erythrocyte and thrombocyte parameters of the A3AR KO mice were confirmed. Compartments of the bone marrow progenitor cells for granulocytes/ macrophages and erythrocytes were enhanced in the control, as well as in the 5-FU-administered A3AR KO mice. 5-FU-induced hematopoietic suppression, evaluated on day 2 after the administration of the cytotoxic drug, was found to be significantly deeper in the A3AR KO mice compared with their WT counterparts, as measured at the level of the bone marrow progenitor cells. The rate of regeneration, as assessed between days 2 and 7 after 5-FU administration, was observed in the population of the granulocyte/macrophage progenitor cells to be higher in the A3AR KO mice in comparison with the WT ones. The increased depth of 5-FU-induced suppression in the compartments of the hematopoietic progenitor cells in the A3AR KO mice represents probably a hitherto undescribed further consequence of the lack of adenosine A3 receptors and indicates its synergism with the pharmacologically induced cytotoxic action of 5-FU., M. Hofer, M. Pospíšil, L. Dušek, Z. Hoferová, D. Komůrková., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Positive effects of repeated administration of diclofenac, an inhibitor of prostaglandin synthesis, in terms of prevention of tumor development and stimulation of hematopoiesis have been observed in C3H mice transplanted subcutaneously with G:5:113 fibrosarcoma cells. Fourteen-day treatment with diclofenac (3.75 mg/kg/day) started from day 5 after tumor cell transplantation. Measurements of tumors and hematological examinations were performed on day 30. The results strongly suggest the possibility that inhibitors of prostaglandin synthesis (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) may be used in oncological practice where the observed effects are highly desirable., M. Hofer, Z. Hoferová, P. Fedoročko, N. O. Macková., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Differences in the occurrence of monogeneans on lamellae of fish gill arches were observed in this study. These differences were attributed to variations in water current on the gill surfaces or to greater area of certain arches. Two computer simulation programs based on gill area and water current were written to generate parasite melapopulations with clumped patterns. The results obtained were compared with true distributions of selected freshwater monogenean taxa. The combination of both theoretical models (gill area and water current) had greater explanatory power than either of the models alone.