Helminth community structure of the white-bellied woolly mouse opossum Marmosa constantiae Thomas, 1904 in Central-West Brazil.

Marmosa constantiae is a species of marsupial restricted to the central portion of South America. In Brazil, it occurs in the northwestern region including five states of the Amazon, Cerrado, and Pantanal biomes. However, there is no study of the helminth fauna or helminth community structure for this marsupial. The aims of this study were to describe the species composition and to analyse the structure of the helminthic community of M. constantiae in an area of the Amazon Arc in Sinop, north of the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Parasites were searched in 53 specimens of this marsupial, among which 44 were infected with at least one helminth species. Parasitic helminths were counted and identified. Nine species were collected: seven nematodes, one cestode, and one acanthocephalan. The most abundant species were Gracilioxyuris agilisis, Travassostrongylus scheibelorum, Pterygodermatites sinopiensis, and Subulura eliseae. These species were the only dominant ones in the component community. No significant differences were observed in the abundance and prevalence of helminths between male and female hosts. Host body size significantly influenced helminth abundance in males. The pattern of community structure considering the infracommunities in this locality indicated more species replacement than species loss along the environmental gradient. This is the first study to report the helminth fauna and the helminth community structure of M. constantiae.

Rickettsia rickettsii isolation from naturally infected Amblyomma parvum ticks by centrifugation in a 24-well culture plate technique.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever is an acute illness caused by Rickettsia rickettsii (R. rickettsii) and is transmitted by the bite of ticks of the genera Dermacentor, Amblyomma and Rhipicephalus. The illness results in a high mortality rate and may be easily confused with other febrile syndromes. In Yucatan State, Mexico, childhood cases with a high mortality have been reported. In this work we report the isolation of a Mexican R. rickettsii strain from a tick egg mass using an alternative method for Rickettsia isolation with 24-well plates. We also identified a potential vector of R. rickettsii in the southeast of Mexico, which is Amblyomma parvum.