A three-year-old male South China tiger died in the tiger enclosure of the China Tiger Park in the Meihua Mountains on December 2018 after being bitten by a tick. This tiger presented clinical symptoms like whole-body severe jaundice, hepatosplenomegaly, kidney, and lymph node hemorrhages. The Colpodella sp.-specific 18S rRNA gene was detected using nested PCR. Interestingly, the DNA isolated from the blood of the tiger was found to be 100% similar to that of the tick by NCBI BLAST analysis. However, the DNA fragments isolated from the tiger's blood were 90.1% similar to the Colpodella sp. strain human erythrocyte parasite (HEP, MH208621) and 90.4% similar to the Colpodella sp. strain Heilongjiang (HLJ, KT364261). To investigate the species of ticks and ticks-carried Colpodella parasites in this region, the species of ticks obtained from the grasses outside the tiger enclosure and the species of Colpodella carried by ticks were identified. The DNA from ticks as well as that from the tick-borne Colpodella sp. were amplified from each tick using PCR followed by amplicon sequencing. In total 402 adult ticks samples were collected, among which 22 were positive for Colpodella sp. (5.5%), and the species were further determined by morphology, DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analyses. Interestingly, one Colpodella sp. was found to have 94.2% sequence similarities to the Colpodella sp. strain HEP (MH208621). This strain was previously reported to infect a woman in Yunnan, China. In addition, three Colpodella sp. showed 87-91% sequence similarities to the Colpodella sp. strain HLJ (KT364261), which was previously reported to infect human in Heilongjiang, China. This study disclosed the possibility of zoonotic transmission of Colpodella sp. by ticks in China. Finally, it provides a basis for urgently determining and monitoring the repertoire of ticks-borne piroplasmid pathogens, with the ultimate aim of strategic control.
- MeSH
- Phylogeny MeSH
- Ticks * parasitology MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Child, Preschool MeSH
- RNA, Ribosomal, 18S genetics MeSH
- Tigers * genetics MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Humans MeSH
- Male MeSH
- Child, Preschool MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Case Reports MeSH
- Geographicals
- China MeSH
Buffaloes represent an important economic resource for several regions of the world including Romania. In the present study, we examined 104 faecal samples collected from 38 buffalo calves (2-11 weeks old) from household rearing systems in Romania for gastrointestinal parasites. All samples were tested using the saturated salt flotation, McMaster and modified Ziehl-Nielsen staining methods. PCR coupled with sequencing isolates were used to identify assemblages of Giardia lamblia (Kunstler, 1882) and species of Cryptosporidium Tyzzer, 1907. Overall, 33 out of 38 examined buffalo calves were infected with different gastrointestinal parasites: 16 had single infections and 17 had mixed infections with two or three parasites. Species of Eimeria Schneider, 1875 (32/38; 84%) were the most prevalent parasites; eight species were identified according to the oocyst morphology, including the pathogenic E. bareillyi (Gill, Chhabra et Lall, 1963) which was detected for the first time in buffaloes from Romania. The nematodes Toxocara vitulorum (Goeze, 1782) (11/38; 37%) and Strongyloides papillosus (Wedl, 1856) (6/38; 16%) were also detected. Cryptosporidium spp. were found in four (11%) buffalo calves; two of them were molecularly identified as C. ryanae Fayer, Santin et Trout, 2008, and another one clustered in the same clade with C. ryanae, C. bovis Fayer, Santin et Xiao, 2005, and C. xiaoi Fayer et Santin, 2009. Giardia duodenalis assemblage E was also molecularly detected in a single (2.6%) buffalo calf. The presence of other buffaloes in the same barn was identified as a risk factor for infection with T. vitulorum. Our results indicate extensive parasitic infections in buffalo calves from northwestern Romania and underline the necessity of prophylactic treatments for T. vitulorum and E. bareillyi.
- MeSH
- Buffaloes parasitology MeSH
- Cryptosporidium * MeSH
- Eimeria * MeSH
- Feces parasitology MeSH
- Giardia lamblia * genetics MeSH
- Cryptosporidiosis * epidemiology parasitology MeSH
- Parasites * MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Geographicals
- Romania MeSH
The taxonomy of myxosporeans was traditionally dependent solely upon the spore morphological and morphometric data. Intensive reports of intraspecific morphological variation, however, are increasingly challenging the taxonomic approaches for myxosporeans. In the present work, the morphological pleomorphism of myxospores of Myxobolus drjagini (Akhmerov, 1954) was observed. More interestingly, all of these pleomorphic myxospores occurred in the same plasmodium of M. drjagini, which refutes the previous hypothesis that morphological variation of M. drjagini was derived from its responses to differences in nutrition and immunological responses associated with different host tissues. Bearing the intraspecific morphometric and morphotype variation in mind, the combination of morphological, ecological and molecular data should be applied to the species identification and delimitation for myxosporeans. This is the first reported myxobolid species with high pleomorphic myxospores which are present in the same plasmodium.
- MeSH
- Phylogeny MeSH
- Myxobolus * MeSH
- Fish Diseases * MeSH
- Parasitic Diseases, Animal * MeSH
- Plasmodium * MeSH
- Spores, Protozoan MeSH
- Gills MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
In the present study, we have investigated the role of antimalarial drug halofantrine (HF) in inducing the sterile protection against challenges with sporozoites of the live infectious Plasmodium yoelii (Killick-Kendrick, 1967) in Swiss mice malaria model. We observed that during the first to third sequential sporozoite inoculation cycles, blood-stage patency remains the same in the control and chemoprophylaxis under HF drug cover (CPS-HF) groups. However, a delayed blood-stage infection was observed during the fourth and fifth sporozoite challenges and complete sterile protection was produced following the sixth sporozoite challenge in CPS-HF mice. We also noticed a steady decline in liver stage parasite load after 3th to 6th sporozoite challenge cycle in CPS-HF mice. CPS-HF immunisation results in a significant up-regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-12 and iNOS) and down-regulation of anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10 and TGF-β) mRNA expression in hepatic mononuclear cells (HMNC) and spleen cells in the immunised CPS-HF mice (after 6th sporozoite challenge) compared to control. Overall, our study suggests that the repetitive sporozoite inoculation under HF drug treatment develops a strong immune response that confers protection against subsequent challenges with sporozoites of P. yoelii.
- MeSH
- Chemoprevention MeSH
- Phenanthrenes MeSH
- Immunization MeSH
- Pharmaceutical Preparations * MeSH
- Malaria * prevention & control MeSH
- Mice, Inbred BALB C MeSH
- Mice MeSH
- Plasmodium yoelii * MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Mice MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
The net-winged beetle genus Alyculus Kasantsev is reported from Peninsular Malaysia for the first time and a new species, A. malaypeninsularis sp. nov., is described and illustrated. An expanded identification key to Alyculus males is provided and the biology and distribution of the species are discussed.
- MeSH
- Coleoptera anatomy & histology classification physiology MeSH
- Species Specificity MeSH
- Animal Distribution physiology MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Male MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Geographicals
- Malaysia MeSH
Larvae of 14 species and pupae of 12 species of Palaearctic Tychius Germar, 1817 are described for the first time. Larvae and pupae of T.meliloti Stephens, 1831, T. squamulatus Gyllenhal, 1835 and T. quinquepunctatus (Linnaeus, 1758), are redescribed with addition of new characters. They belong to 10 of 22 groups of species assembled through adult morphological characters in this region and, like all other Tychius with known biology, the studied species live on Leguminosae Papilionoideae, belonging to the tribes Genisteae, Loteae, Galegeae, Trifolieae and Vicieae. Generally larvae, but not pupae, show a few characters useful to support some groupings previously postulated on adult morphology, and also suggest some phylogenetic relationships among groups although these are partly weak because of several clear parallelisms or convergences. One of the most numerous and better known group of species, the T. stephensi group living on Trifolieae, is supported by two distinctive larval character states, whereas all the other groups seem to be distinguishable from each other at least by a unique larval character state. New bionomic data concerning larval and pupal development and adult emergence are reported for all the described species. These data confirm that this genus is highly homogeneous in habits and times of development, with unique adaptive differences in adult emergence and overwintering according to the single or double seasonal flowering of the host plant. On the basis of morphological characters of immatures and adults, a possible concordance between the evolution of Tychius and that of their host plants is discussed.
- MeSH
- Animal Structures anatomy & histology growth & development MeSH
- Biological Evolution MeSH
- Fabaceae parasitology MeSH
- Phylogeny * MeSH
- Pupa anatomy & histology classification genetics growth & development MeSH
- Larva anatomy & histology classification genetics growth & development MeSH
- Weevils anatomy & histology classification genetics growth & development MeSH
- Animal Distribution MeSH
- Organ Size MeSH
- Body Size MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
