RESUMEN
This study provides insights about the diversity, prevalence and distribution of alpine wild galliformes gastrointestinal parasite community, trying to fill a gap in the scientific information currently available in scientific literature. The analysis included three host species: 77 rock partridge (Alectoris graeca saxatilis), 83 black grouse (Tetrao tetrix tetrix) and 26 rock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta helveticus) shot during the hunting seasons 2008-2015. Parasites isolated were Ascaridia compar, Capillaria caudinflata and cestodes. The rock ptarmigan was free from gastrointestinal parasites, whereas the most prevalent helminth (37%) was A. compar in both black grouse and rock partridge. C. caudinflata occurrence was significantly higher in black grouse (prevalence = 10%, mean abundance = 0.6 parasites/sampled animal) than in rock partridge (prevalence = 1.20%, mean abundance = 0.01 parasites/sampled animal). Significant differences were detected among hunting districts. A. compar was found with a significant higher degree of infestation in the hunting districts in the northern part of the study area whereas cestodes abundance was higher in Lanzo Valley. Quantitative analysis of risk factors was carried out using a generalized linear model (GLM) only on the most common parasite (A. compar). Latitude was the only factors associated with infestation risk (OR = 52.4). This study provides information on the composition and variability of the parasite community in the alpine Galliformes species.
Asunto(s)
Ascaridiasis/veterinaria , Enfermedades de las Aves/epidemiología , Infecciones por Cestodos/veterinaria , Infecciones por Enoplida/veterinaria , Galliformes , Parasitosis Intestinales/epidemiología , Animales , Ascaridia/aislamiento & purificación , Ascaridiasis/epidemiología , Ascaridiasis/parasitología , Biodiversidad , Enfermedades de las Aves/parasitología , Capillaria/aislamiento & purificación , Cestodos/aislamiento & purificación , Infecciones por Cestodos/epidemiología , Infecciones por Cestodos/parasitología , Infecciones por Enoplida/epidemiología , Infecciones por Enoplida/parasitología , Interacciones Huésped-Parásitos , Parasitosis Intestinales/parasitología , Italia/epidemiología , PrevalenciaRESUMEN
We describe the gastrointestinal parasite community of Lepus timidus varronis, a subspecies of the mountain hare (L. timidus) living in the Alps. Two nematode species are reported for the first time in L. timidus.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedades Gastrointestinales/veterinaria , Helmintiasis Animal/parasitología , Helmintos/clasificación , Animales , Enfermedades Gastrointestinales/epidemiología , Enfermedades Gastrointestinales/parasitología , Liebres , Helmintiasis Animal/epidemiología , Italia/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
The eastern cottontail Sylvilagus floridanus is a native American lagomorph. Within the genus Sylvilagus, the eastern cottontail is the species with the widest distribution. From 1950s, the species was introduced to several European countries. A rapid territorial expansion of the introduced eastern cottontails has been observed in many areas of Italy. The eastern cottontail has been demonstrated to play a main role as carrier of exotic parasites. To date, three nematode species, exotic in Italian ecosystems, have been reported from introduced S. floridanus. However, its parasite fauna biodiversity is richer in native populations of the American continent. The aim of this work was to further investigate the gastrointestinal parasites of S. floridanus, to evaluate the potential presence of other exotic species. During 2010, 101 hosts were examined, and three nematodes were collected from their digestive tract. Two parasite species (Obeliscoides cuniculi, Trichostrongylus calcaratus) were already reported in Italy; the isolation of Trichostrongylus affinis is instead the first report of this nematode in Italy and in Europe as a whole. This study wants to highlight the great risks related to the introduction of allochthonous species. The impact of the invasion by alien animal species may be particularly severe for public and animal health, due to the potential introduction of new pathogens. The good number of exotic parasites found in introduced eastern cottontails, together with the few sanitary surveys carried out, suggests that an epidemiological survey, with specimens from multiple localities on a wider geographic range, could lead to interesting findings on parasites of native and alien lagomorphs in Europe.
Asunto(s)
Parasitosis Intestinales/veterinaria , Especies Introducidas , Conejos/parasitología , Tricostrongiliasis/veterinaria , Trichostrongylus/aislamiento & purificación , Animales , Ecosistema , Femenino , Italia , Masculino , Trichostrongylus/anatomía & histologíaAsunto(s)
Anticuerpos Antivirales/sangre , Enfermedades de las Cabras/epidemiología , Infecciones por Pestivirus/veterinaria , Animales , Animales Salvajes/virología , Ensayo de Inmunoadsorción Enzimática/veterinaria , Femenino , Cabras , Italia/epidemiología , Masculino , Pestivirus/inmunología , Infecciones por Pestivirus/epidemiología , Estudios Seroepidemiológicos , España/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Between 1996 and 2005, 215 free-ranging Alpine chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) were immobilised with xylazine hydrochloride. The 110 male and 105 female animals received a mean (sd) dose of 2.5 (0.6) mg/kg with a range from 1.4 to 4.8 mg/kg. The immobilisation was reversed in 201 of the animals with an intramuscular injection of 0.3 (0.1) mg/kg atipamezole (range 0.03 to 0.76 mg/kg), corresponding to a mean ratio of atipamezole:xylazine of 1:9.4 (4.3). All the chamois were immobilised, but shorter induction and recovery times, and deeper sedation with no reactions to handling were obtained in more than 80 per cent of the animals with doses of 2.6 to 3.6 mg/kg of xylazine, reversed with 0.26 to 0.36 mg/kg atipamezole (a ratio of 1:10), injected within 90 minutes.
Asunto(s)
Agonistas alfa-Adrenérgicos/farmacología , Antagonistas Adrenérgicos alfa/farmacología , Imidazoles/farmacología , Inmovilización/veterinaria , Rupicapra , Xilazina/farmacología , Agonistas alfa-Adrenérgicos/efectos adversos , Antagonistas Adrenérgicos alfa/efectos adversos , Animales , Femenino , Imidazoles/efectos adversos , Masculino , Xilazina/efectos adversosRESUMEN
The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) harbours some of the most polymorphic loci in vertebrate genomes. MHC genes are thought to be subject to some form of balancing selection, most likely pathogen-mediated selection. Hence, MHC genes are excellent candidates for exploring adaptive processes. In this study, we investigated the genetic variation at exon 2 of the DRB class II MHC locus in 191 alpine chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) from 10 populations in the eastern Alps of Italy. In particular, we were interested in distinguishing and estimating the relative impact of selective and demographic factors, while taking into account the confounding effect of recombination. The extremely high d(n)/d(s) ratio and the presence of trans-species polymorphisms suggest that a strong long-term balancing selection effect has been operating at this locus throughout the evolutionary history of this species. We analysed patterns of genetic variation within and between populations, and the mitochondrial D-loop polymorphism patterns were analysed to provide a baseline indicator of the effects of demographic processes. These analyses showed that (i) the chamois experienced a demographic decline in the last 5000-30 000 years, most likely related to the postglacial elevation in temperature; (ii) this demographic process can explain the results of neutrality tests applied to MHC variation within populations, but cannot justify the much weaker divergence between populations implied by MHC as opposed to mitochondrial DNA; (iii) similar sets of divergent alleles are probably maintained with similar frequencies by balancing selection in different populations, and this mechanism is also operating in small isolated populations, which are strongly affected by drift.
Asunto(s)
Evolución Molecular , Genética de Población , Antígenos de Histocompatibilidad Clase II/genética , Recombinación Genética , Rupicapra/genética , Selección Genética , Animales , ADN Mitocondrial/genética , Haplotipos , Italia , Funciones de Verosimilitud , Modelos Genéticos , Polimorfismo Genético , Dinámica Poblacional , Análisis de Secuencia de ADNRESUMEN
Twenty-nine free-ranging Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) were darted in the Sagarmatha National Park (Nepal) using different combinations of xylazine and ketamine. Animals in Group 1 (n = 4) received a mean xylazine-ketamine dose of 2.77 +/- 0.99 mg/kg xylazine plus 3.32 +/- 0.19 mg/kg ketamine in males and 2.39 +/- 0.10 mg/kg xylazine plus 4.29 +/- 0.17 mg/kg ketamine in females. Animals in Group 2 (n = 25) received a mean xylazine-ketamine dose of 1.70 +/- 0.41 mg/kg xylazine plus 3.06 +/- 0.74 mg/kg ketamine in males and 1.82 +/- 0.29 mg/kg xylazine plus 3.29 +/- 0.52 mg/kg ketamine in females. No anesthetic-related mortality was recorded. Anesthesia was reversed by a standard dose of 11 mg/animal of atipamezole administered by intramuscular injection. Although all anesthetic dosages immobilized free-ranging tahr successfully, a quick and smooth recovery was obtained (11.1 +/- 5.6 min) only with the dosages of Group 2.
Asunto(s)
Agonistas alfa-Adrenérgicos/administración & dosificación , Antagonistas Adrenérgicos alfa/administración & dosificación , Anestésicos Combinados , Anestésicos Disociativos/administración & dosificación , Inmovilización/veterinaria , Rumiantes/fisiología , Animales , Relación Dosis-Respuesta a Droga , Femenino , Frecuencia Cardíaca/efectos de los fármacos , Imidazoles/administración & dosificación , Inmovilización/métodos , Inyecciones Intramusculares/veterinaria , Ketamina/administración & dosificación , Masculino , Nepal , Respiración/efectos de los fármacos , Factores de Tiempo , Xilazina/administración & dosificaciónRESUMEN
Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus, fam. Leporidae), introduced into Piedmont (Italy) in the 1960s, was studied as carrier of dermatophyte fungi. Of 216 hair samples collected from animals culled between September 1999 and July 2000 in the Province of Alessandria (Piedmont, Italy) during a pest control project, 57 (26.4%) yielded dermatophyte colonies. As two different species of dermatophytes grew from two samples, a total of 59 fungal isolates (26.5%) were obtained. Six dermatophyte species both geophilic (M. gypseum, M. cookei, Trichophyton ajelloi, T. terrestre) and zoophilic (M. canis, T. mentagrophytes) were identified. No sex-related differences were found but season-related differences were observed. The highest prevalence of dermatophyte-positive samples was recorded in May-September, due to the geophilic fungi whose prevalence decreased during colder and increased during warmer months (p < 0.001). The presence of zoophilic dermatophytes, T. mentagrophytes, commonly associated with rodents, small mammals and lagomorphs and M. canis, usually correlated with domestic environment, did not change the whole year round. As Eastern cottontail has been showed to be a carrier of dermatophytes transmissible to man (M. canis, T. mentagrophytes and M. gypseum), it may represent a source of infection for gamekeepers, hunters and veterinarians.
Asunto(s)
Arthrodermataceae/aislamiento & purificación , Portador Sano/veterinaria , Dermatomicosis/veterinaria , Conejos/microbiología , Animales , Arthrodermataceae/clasificación , Portador Sano/epidemiología , Portador Sano/microbiología , Dermatomicosis/epidemiología , Dermatomicosis/microbiología , Femenino , Italia/epidemiología , Masculino , Microsporum/aislamiento & purificación , Estaciones del Año , Trichophyton/aislamiento & purificación , Zoonosis/epidemiología , Zoonosis/microbiologíaRESUMEN
Wild mosquitoes were allowed to feed, during two nights, on a heartworm-infected dog with a very high microfilaraemia (72,000 and 78,000 microfilariae/ml just prior to be allocated in the live trap). A heartworm-free dog was used as control bait in the second night. Engorged mosquitoes (Aedes caspius, Anopheles maculipennis s.l., Culex modestus, and Cx pipiens) were kept under laboratory conditions, artificially fed until day 10 post-infection (PI) and then dissected for the presence of Dirofilaria immitis larvae. Mortality of Ae. caspius and Cx modestus was significantly higher than controls on day 3 PI (89.4 and 80.3%, respectively), but survival rates were similar in the following period. Third-stage larvae were observed from day 12 to 17 PI in the four mosquito species studied. However, vector efficiency was significantly higher in Ae. caspius which produced 102 (73.9%) of the 138 infective larvae found. Although less efficient vectors, the other 3 species may contribute to D. immitis transmission in the study area due to their abundance (Cx modestus) or higher resistance to the negative effects of infection (An. maculipennis s.l., Cx pipiens). As far as Cx pipiens is concerned, this mosquito, which luckily fed the least frequently on the dog, confirmed to act as powerful vector in iperendemic areas. The risks for veterinary and medical health, related to the zoo-antropophylic host-feeding pattern of the studied species, are discussed.
Asunto(s)
Culicidae/parasitología , Dirofilaria immitis/aislamiento & purificación , Agricultura , Animales , Culicidae/clasificación , Vectores de Enfermedades , Perros , OryzaRESUMEN
Two cases of haemonchosis occurred in the Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica) population of the National Hunting Reserve of Tortosa and Beseit, northeastern Spain, in July 1992 and May 1993. The animals were cachectic and recumbent and had an acute hemorrhagic, macrocytic and hypochromic anemia; which was related to a high infection of 2,016 and 1,863 Haemonchus contortus, respectively, in the abomasum of the animals.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedades de las Cabras/epidemiología , Hemoncosis/veterinaria , Abomaso/parasitología , Animales , Animales Salvajes , Brotes de Enfermedades/veterinaria , Femenino , Enfermedades de las Cabras/sangre , Cabras , Hemoncosis/sangre , Hemoncosis/epidemiología , Haemonchus/crecimiento & desarrollo , Haemonchus/aislamiento & purificación , Masculino , España/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
A field survey aimed at updating knowledge of the distribution and prevalence of filarial infections in the Piedmont region was undertaken. Blood samples were collected from 2628 dogs (10-15 dogs/100 km2) which had remained in the local area, were kept in the open overnight, were more than 2 years old and had not previously been treated with microfilaricidal drugs. Infection was diagnosed by a modified Knott test. Comparison of the results with those from a similar survey carried out 25 years ago showed a 3-fold increase in the size of the endemic area, with the colonization of new habitats, and a 4-fold increase in the prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis infection.
Asunto(s)
Infecciones por Dipetalonema/veterinaria , Dirofilariasis/epidemiología , Enfermedades de los Perros/epidemiología , Animales , Infecciones por Dipetalonema/epidemiología , Brotes de Enfermedades , Perros , Femenino , Italia/epidemiología , Masculino , Prevalencia , Factores de RiesgoRESUMEN
Sarcoptic mange is the most severe infection in chamois in the Eastern Alps. This study analyses and discusses data from two mange foci in the Foresta Demaniale di Tarvisio (NE Italy). The first impact of mange on naive host populations was dramatic, with mortality rates of over 80%. The chamois herds were decimated, but they recovered quite fast and two later epizootics were observed to have a far less severe impact on the chamois population. Intervals between successive waves lasted 10 to 15 years. No sign of low reproductive performance nor evidence of a poor physical condition of the animals was observed in the years preceding the new epizootic waves. Mortality rates were only slightly influenced by the density of the host population. In a long lasting focus of disease, adult males appeared more vulnerable to mange than other sex and age classes. Cases of mange were also more frequent in winter and spring. This seasonal trend may be explained by the interaction between the dynamics of mites, ethological patterns-rut activity-and the poorer physical condition of the host during this period.
Asunto(s)
Brotes de Enfermedades/veterinaria , Enfermedades de las Cabras/epidemiología , Cabras/parasitología , Escabiosis/veterinaria , Distribución por Edad , Animales , Femenino , Fertilidad , Enfermedades de las Cabras/parasitología , Italia/epidemiología , Masculino , Prevalencia , Escabiosis/epidemiología , Escabiosis/parasitología , Estaciones del AñoRESUMEN
The following study records ten years' experience in the control of Fascioloides magna infection in a fenced area grazed by an overdense red deer population together with free-ranging cattle. During the winter 1977/78 mortality due to a "fascioloidosis-malnutrition syndrome" reduced the deer stock almost by half. Control measures were aimed at combatting the fluke in the wild definitive host by the administration of medicated pellets. Four flukicides were used over the years: rafoxanide, diamphenetide, oxyclozanide and triclabendazole. Efforts were also made to control the number of deer and to improve their condition by artificial feeding during the winter months. Intervention on the habitat of the intermediate hosts of F. magna were purposely avoided. The efficacy of this programme was evaluated by both copromicroscopic examinations and fluke counts from the livers of the wild and domestic macromammals living in the study area. Some yield parameters of the deer population were also taken into account. Results demonstrate that F. magna infection, though a hazard for cattle productivity, remained a deer problem when pharmacological prophylaxis was regularly applied.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedades de los Bovinos/prevención & control , Ciervos/parasitología , Reservorios de Enfermedades , Fasciolidae/aislamiento & purificación , Fascioloidiasis/prevención & control , Alimentación Animal , Crianza de Animales Domésticos , Animales , Animales Domésticos/parasitología , Animales Salvajes/parasitología , Antihelmínticos/administración & dosificación , Antihelmínticos/uso terapéutico , Bovinos/parasitología , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/epidemiología , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/transmisión , Estudios Transversales , Ecología , Fascioloidiasis/epidemiología , Fascioloidiasis/transmisión , Femenino , Italia/epidemiología , MasculinoRESUMEN
Sporocysts of Sarcocystis sp. from dogs fed with ibex meat were orally inoculated into kids and lambs. Three kids, given 4 x 10(6) and 4 x 10(4) sporocysts, respectively, died from acute sarcocystosis. Schizonts, though found in all the tissues of these kids, were particularly numerous in the kidneys, brain and spinal cord. Another three kids inoculated with 5 x 10(3) sporocysts and two lambs, inoculated with 1 x 10(6) and 5 x 10(3) sporocysts, respectively, showed no clinical signs and were sacrificed between 111 and 130 days after infection. Mature sarcocysts were found both in the heart and striated muscles of these animals. No parasitic stage was found in two kids and two lambs used as uninoculated controls. Biological differences between Sarcocystis sp. from ibex and the other sarcosporidians with a canine-caprine or canine-ovine cycle are stressed.