Application of PCR and Reverse Line Blot Hybridization to Detect Arthropod 1 Transmitted Haemopathogens in Horses Presented at a Referral Veterinary Facility in 2 New Jersey, USA

Equine granulocytic ehrlichiosis is a tick-borne zoonotic disease caused by the 36 intracellular bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum. This disease has been well 37 documented in California, USA and sporadic cases have been recorded in New Jersey 38 and other states. Equine piroplasmosis is a reportable disease in the United States with 39 the most recent outbreak reported in Florida in 2008. In order to detect these diseases in 40 an area of low prevalence, two PCRs followed by a reverse line blot (RLB) hybridization 41 process were performed on DNA extracted from blood of 133 horses presented at a large 42 equine referral clinic in New Jersey. One PCR amplified the 16S rRNA gene for 43 Anaplasma/ Ehrlichia and gene and the other the 18S rRNA gene for Theileria/Babesia. 44 Amplified products were applied to a membrane to which oligonucleotide probes for equine granulocytic ehrlichiosis (Anaplasma phagocytophilum) and equine piroplasmosis 46 (Theileria equi and Babesia caballi) were covalently attached. Two horses were positive 47 for Anaplasma phagocytophilum .This is the first published record of A phagocytophilum 48 DNA to be detected in horses in the United States using the reverse line blot 49 hybridization process. This technique is useful for large scale epidemiological screening 50 and detection of several tick-transmitted haemopathogens simultaneously in animals with 51 vague clinical signs of disease.

The parasite fauna of two populations of feral pigeons from North and South Trinidad [abstract]

Two populations of feral pigeons (Columba livia) from two locations in Trinidad were examined for their internal and external parasites. Twenty-five birds were live-captured from the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) while twenty were captured in San Fernando. Microscopic examination of blood smears for haemoparasites revealed that both populations had high infection rates of Plasmodium and Haemoproteus and relatively low infection rates of Toxoplasma. Examination of faecal samples revealed that a high proportion of birds were infected with with coccidia, reaching 100 percent in birds from the EWMSC. Other gastrointestinal parasites observed included Capillaria, Ascardia and termatodes. All birds from both localities had high burdens of lice, mite and pigeon fly infestations. The significnce of these results in relation to the role of wild pigeons as reservoirs of pathogens affecting the poultry industry and in the transmission of zoonotic diseases is discussed. (AU)

A case of feline haemobartonellosis (feline infectious anaemia) and opisthorchiasis in Trinidad

A ten-year old cat showing signs of anaemia, inappetence, salivation and muscular twitching was diagnosed as having a mixed infection with the blood parasite Haemobartonella felis and the liver fluke Opisthorchis felineus. Opisthorchis felineus can infect man and is therefore considered a zoonosis. Neither disease has been previously reported in Trinidad. (AU)

A survey of intestinal helminths of well-cared-for dogs in Jamaica, and their potential public health significance

This study investigates the level of helminthic infestation in better-cared-for dogs in a middle-class community in suburban Kingston. A canine zoographic study was conducted, and fresh faecal deposits were collected and analysed for helminth life-cycle stages. The survey indicated that 73 percent (n=93) of households in the study area owned one dog or more (mean=1.4). Resident's attitudes towards canine management suggested that the dog population was, in general, restricted to the residential estate, and most owners claimed to have dewormed their dogs at least as young animals. Of 141 faecal specimens, 58 percent contained eggs or larvae of one or more of eight helminths: Uncinaria stenocephala (26 percent), Ancylostoma sp. (23 percent), Trichuris vulpis (9 percent), Toxocara canis (8 percent), Spirocerca lupi (6 percent), Strongyloides sp. (6 percent), Apophallus sp. (4 percent) and taeniids (1 percent). There was a high level of multiple infection in the host animals, with approximately one fifth of the infected samples containing three or more helminth types. Infection intensity was apparently low, but some dogs harboured heavy worm loads. (AU)

Age-relationships of Toxocara canis seropositivity and geohelminth infection prevalence in two communities in St. Lucia, West Indies

Sera were examined from an age-stratified sample of two Caribbean communities using the Toxocara-Elisa with larval Es antigen. Seropositivity was markedly age dependent, attaining maximal values (40 and 60 percent) in 5-15 year olds and declining in adults. The rate of acquisition of infection with Toxocara canis and the age-prevalence profile are similar to those of Ascaris lumbricoides and Trichuris trichiura. It is suggest that toxocariasis is likely to be prevalent in tropical areas with endemic geohelminthiasis.(AU)

Fascioliasis in Jamaica: epidemiologic and economic aspects of a snail-borne parasitic zoonoses

This study attempts to quantify the animal health, veterinary public health, and economic impact of fascioliasis in Jamaica. A coprologic survey conducted for this purpose in late 1979 and early 1980 revealed an overall fascioliasis prevalence of at least 22.2 percent (n=520) in cattle and 17.2 percent (n=514) in goats. In general the prevalence of the disease was found to be directly correlated with rainfall and inversely correlated with altitude. Four ecological zones of endemicity were identified and related to the epidemiology of the intermediate host, Fossaria cubensis. The economic cost of the disease was estimated from production statistics and a questionnaire survey. Losses were categorised as either direct (due mainly to liver condemnation and suboptimal dairy or beef production) or indirect (due mainly to treatment costs). The estimate did not include the less quantifiable costs associated with mortality, provision of veterinary services, and lost opportunities for development. The total economic cost of fascioliasis in Jamaica, as indicated by the above data, appears to be on the order of J$2.4 million (J$1.78=US1.00); and if anticipated improvements in Jamaica's livestock industry are allowed for, this total rises to J$3.2 million. It is noteworthy that a significant share of this cost would be in scarce foreign exchange spent on drugs and on imported substitutes for local meat and dairy products. It should also be recalled that fascioliasis is a zoonosis producing significant numbers of human cases in the Greater Antilles, and that inappropriate changes in vegetable cultivation practices could cause it to become a significant health problem in Jamaica. Finally, there is a very real danger that proposed increases in Jamaica's cattle and sheep herds could enormously increase the prevalence of the disease, as has happened elsewhere. It is therefore recommended that development of the country's livestock industry be paralled by development of an appropriate fascioliasis control strategy. Such a planned approach to fascioliasis control, which tends to be relatively cost-effective, confines treatment to the periods and localities at greatest risk and uses animal management techniques to reduce the incidence of infection (Summary)

Leptospirosis in Trinidad and Grenada, with special reference to the mongoose

In Trinidad, six leptospira isolates were made from 957 febrile patients between 1968 and 1972. In addition CF antibodies were detected in 6.6//of febrile patients and human survey sera collected during this period. In 1972 alone, 10.4//(38/363) of sera examined had CF titres consistent with positive exposure to the disease. Grenada does not report leptospirosis, but the disease is common in mongooses in both Trinidad and Grenada. Serogroups Icterohaemorrahagian, Pomona and Canicola are present in Grenada with 35.2//of mongooses examined being seropositive. Five Canicola strains of Leptospira were isolated from mongooses in Trinidad, and serological studies showed that this was most common serogroups from mongooses on the island. A total of 31 strains recorded from at least seven different serogroups and eight named serotypes have been isolated from humans, rats and mongooses in Trinidad. Human leptospirosis is probably more common in the Caribbean than the medical records indicate. (AU)

Enzootic rodent leishmaniasis in Trinidad, West Indies

Human cutaneous leishmaniasis is a zoonotic disease widely distributed in Central and South America. Small mammals play important roles in the natural history of the disease. This article attempts to define more precisely the roles that these mammals play in the ecology of the parasite.(AU)

Transmission of infectious drug resistance from animals to man

The antibiotic resistance patterns of califorms in faecal specimens from pigs and their human contacts were studied. The ability of the resistant coliforms to transfer their resistance in vitro to antibiotic-sensitive recipients was examined. The results showed that pigs which had received antibiotics carried more multiply-resistant, R-factor bearing coliforms than pigs which had not been given antibiotics. Human contacts of the antibiotic-treated pigs had a higher incidence of antibiotic-resistant coliforms with R-factors than contacts of pigs which had not been given antibiotics. It is concluded that antibiotic treatment of farm animals may lead to acquisition of antibiotic resistance by gut coliforms of man.(AU)

A revision of trypanosoma (schizotrypanum) cruzi strains from British Honduras, and the importance of strain characteristics in experimental chemotherapy of Chagas' disease

The characteristics of 10 strains of Trypanosoma cruzi from British Honduras are reviewed and discussed. The strains were isolated from the faeces of wild-caught Triatoma dimidiata and all proved to be highly pathogenic to white mice and rats and to certain species of wild rodents. All the strains were characterized by a high cardiotropism, which did not diminish even after prolonged passage in further animals. A variable degree of neurotropism, characterized by parlysis of the limbs, produced by the strains was observed in many laboratory animal as well as in some of the experimentally infected wild rodents. Histological studies of organs from several of the paralized animals failed to provide definitive clues as to the origin of the paralysis. A wide range of dimorphism was observed in the blood-forms of T. cruzi from each of the isolated strains; this dimorphism and the mean nuclear index number changed during each passage. The morphogenisis of the parasites in tissues, in the insect vector, and in NNN culture medium, was found to include amastigote, sphaeromastigote, epimastigote and transitional trypomastigote forms, all leading to the formation of the infective trypanosome form. The importance of co-ordinated studies on the biological and physiological characteristics of T. cruzi strains from man, animal reservoirs, and triatomine insect vectors, from the regions where Chagas' disease is endemic, is emphasized as one of the fundamental requirements for the experimental chemotherapy of Chagas' disease (AU)

Rabies in Grenada

Rabies in Grenada wildlife is at present almost exclusively confined to the mongoose Herpestes auropunctatus, and it is currently estimated tht 3.5 percent of the mongoose population is rabid. There have been 4 human deaths in the past decade, and most of the rabies in dogs, cats, and domestic livestock is thought to originate from mongoose bites. In 1971 over 11,000 dogs were vaccinated, and 25 people received antirabies treatment as a consequence of bites. Although rabies is not yet established in dogs, the presence of a large dog population poses a permanent threat, and dog vaccination campaigns and attempts at mongoose eradication have provided only temporary relief from an increasing problem. The history of rabies on the island up to the end of 1971 is considered, and the outlook for the future discussed.(Summary)

Observations on a zoonosis: leishmaniasis in British Honduras

More than 1600 mammals were examined for infections of Leishmania mexicana. Fourteen infected rats belonging to three species were trapped. A fourth species was experimentally infected. More than 3000 sandflies attracted to rats and oppusums are recorded, principal species being Lutzomyia cruciata, L.flaviscutellata, L. panamensis, L. shannoni, L.permira and L. trinidadensis. More than 2000 sandflies were dissected and flagellates found in twelve. Three strains from L. flaviscutellata proved to be infections of Leishmania mexicana. Many observations on the ecology of the rats and the sandflies are presented and discussed. It is concluded, in the light of the ecological observations, that the rat Ototylomys phyllotis is the principal reservoir host and the fly Lutzomyia flaviscutellata is the principal vector of Leishmania mexicana in British Honduras (Summary)

Dermal leishmaniasis in British Honduras - the parasite

This disease is largely restricted to forest workers and is manifested by localised sores which often causes considerable disfigurement. The causative organism, Leishmania braziliensis mexiccura, is readily demonstrable in stained smears of early lesions, but this becomes increasingly difficult as the infection becomes chronic. Culture in NNN medium supplements microscopic examination. The ear is most commonly involved and lesions there tend to become chronic. Active infection may protect against re-infection but the possibility of long-term immunity is not yet classified. Infected Phlebotomine sand flies and infected rodents were found to co-exist in a selected area of forest where numerous human cases of proven leishmaniasis were found. It is suggested that the disease in British Honduras is a zoonosis. The parasites is maintained in certain rodent populations which act as intermediaries for the Phlebotomes which prey on these rodents and on man. The infected rodents found to date include the Tree-rat (Ototylomus Sp.) White-footed rat (Peromyscus Sp.) and the Spiny-ocket mouse (Heteromys Sp.) (AU)

Veterinary public health: the importance of animal disease to public health in the Caribbean, with special reference to Jamaica

A survey of the Caribbean area by questionnaire, reference to official reports, personal contacts and correspondence, was made in order to find out the incidence of brucellosis. It appears that while the incidence is low in animals and man in most territories, it can assume dangerous proportions in animals if given suitable conditions and can become a formidable public health problem. It is evident that brucellosis in the West Indies is a disease introduced from Europe and the U.S.A. by importation of animals to improve local breeds. It is emphasised that strict precautions must be taken in future to ensure that such animals are brucellosis free (AU)