Parasite Ecology - Science topic

Depending on the species and their habitat, a co-evolution of the animal and what it eats occurs over generations of time. I would try to figure out what positive or negative feed backs have occurred or are occurring between the animal and what it eats. Especially important would be identifying any positive selections occurring in morphology/physiology.

it looks like a coccidia cyst. you should use the staining method.

I figured it out. It was some freaking copepods contaminated in my samples from Carolina

It looks like there could be suckers, but too hard to tell. Can you stain them and take micrographs at a higher magnification? If you suspect there may be hard parts (hooks for example) Gomori's trichrome works great, too. I'd also recommend looking over the known intestinal parasites of your particular fish species. That's a great starting point so the task is less overwhelming.

First two images may be Aelurostrongylus abstrusus,

third one is Capillaria aerophila

with all best wishes

Afkar

Dear Dr.Jarad,

Thanks for the answer, but I asked about the ITALIAN species of horsehair worms, NOT the description of the phylum.

HI See this link 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › NCBI › Literature 

hi

The arthropod fauna decreases from the Subantarctic to the Antarctic, and many of the known species are ectoparasites of seals and birds. These comprise ticks, fleas, feather mites, respiratory mites and lice, both Mallophaga and Anoplura. Fleas and ticks are represented by species confined to the various Subantarctic islands south of South America or New Zealand, and by circumpolar species. One species of flea is probably circumpolar on Antarctica where it is found in the nests of silver grey fulmars and snow petrels. Most of the ecological studies have been confined to the fleas and ticks which infest penguins. Penguins can be heavily infested with the flea Parapsyllus magellanicus heardi and the tick Ixodes uriae on Macquarie Island. The severity of the infestations of each species of penguin is largely determined by their breeding and moulting behaviour. Most of the birds possess more than one species of louse, and penguins are no exception. The feathers of penguins trap an air blanket around the bird when it is swimming, so their lice can multiply whether the penguin is on land or in the sea. Consequently the ecology of penguin lice is probably not unlike that of other bird lice. The lice of seals differ greatly from other mammalian lice, and the lice of the elephant and weddell seal have been shown to multiply only when the seals are ashore. These lice are confined to the tail and flippers of the seal, parts of the body which are associated with thermoregulation. The fluctuations in blood supply and skin temperature of these regions afford more opportunities for the lice to breed when the seal is ashore, and to feed when the seal is at sea.

The arthropod fauna decreases from the Subantarctic to the Antarctic, and many of the known species are ectoparasites of seals and birds. These comprise ticks, fleas, feather mites, respiratory mites and lice, both Mallophaga and Anoplura. Fleas and ticks are represented by species confined to the various Subantarctic islands south of South America or New Zealand, and by circumpolar species. One species of flea is probably circumpolar on Antarctica where it is found in the nests of silver grey fulmars and snow petrels. Most of the ecological studies have been confined to the fleas and ticks which infest penguins. Penguins can be heavily infested with the flea Parapsyllus magellanicus heardi and the tick Ixodes uriae on Macquarie Island. The severity of the infestations of each species of penguin is largely determined by their breeding and moulting behaviour. Most of the birds possess more than one species of louse, and penguins are no exception. The feathers of penguins trap an air blanket around the bird when it is swimming, so their lice can multiply whether the penguin is on land or in the sea. Consequently the ecology of penguin lice is probably not unlike that of other bird lice. The lice of seals differ greatly from other mammalian lice, and the lice of the elephant and weddell seal have been shown to multiply only when the seals are ashore. These lice are confined to the tail and flippers of the seal, parts of the body which are associated with thermoregulation

hi

he genus Dermocystidium was described in 1907. It was previously thought to be a genus of fungal parasites, related to Thraustochytrida and Labyrinthulida (both those groups are now considered to be stramenopiles rather than fungi). Other biologists considered it to be a sporozoanprotist.

It was subsequently identified as one of a group of fish parasites (the "DRIP clade") of previously uncertain affiliation, which were later identified as non-animal, non-fungi opisthokonts,[2] and renamed as Ichthyosporea, and after expansion as Mesomycetozoa. Parasites of crustacea (Dermocystidium daphniae) and molluscs (Dermocystidium marimum) placed in this genus have been found to be stramenopiles and reclassified as Lymphocystidium daphniae and Perkinsus marinus respectively.

The frog parasite Dermocystidium ranae has recently been segregated as Amphibiocystidium ranae

Species[edit]

Dermocystidium anguillae — a gill parasite of eels

Dermocystidium branchialis — a gill parasite of salmonids

Dermocystidium cochliopodii

Dermocystidium cyprini — a gill parasite of carp[5]

Dermocystidium erschowii — a skin parasite of carp

Dermocystidium fennicum — a skin parasite of perch [6]

Dermocystidium gasterostei — a parasite of sticklebacks[7]

Dermocystidium granulosum

Dermocystidium guyenotii

Dermocystidium koi— a skin parasite of carp

Dermocystidium kwangtungensis

Dermocystidium macrophagi

Dermocystidium nemachili

Dermocystidium percae — a skin parasite of perch [6]

Dermocystidium pusula

Dermocystidium salmonis— a gill parasite of salmon

Dermocystidium sinensis[8]

Dermocystidium vejdovskyi— a parasite of pike

Another approach is to use regression models that are appropriate for nominal data or proportion data.

These include log-linear models, logistic regression, and beta regression.

These are particularly useful if you need to add other terms to your model or need a more complex model than can be handled with traditional tests for nominal data.

When using these, be sure to think about what post-hoc testing is available in the software you are using.

In all cases, it is important to understand the uses, limitations, and assumptions of these models. Here are a few simple examples.

Log-linear model:

Models for proportion: logistic, beta, and offset Poisson

SA Satayathum, EM Muchiri, JH Ouma… - The American journal of …, 2006‏ - ASTMH‏

Dag Ton,

Heb je iets aan deze literatuurgegevens?

P. J. Perez-Goodwyn (2006). "Taxonomic revision of the subfamily Lethocerinae Lauck & Menke (Heteroptera: Belostomatidae)". Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie A (Biologie). 695: 1–71. 

D. R. Lauck (1962). "A monograph of the genus Belostoma (Hemiptera), Part I. Introduction and B. Dentatum and Subspinosum groups". Bulletin of the Chicago Academy of Sciences. 11 (3): 34–81. 

D. R. Lauck (1963). "A monograph of the genus Belostoma (Hemiptera), Part II. B. Aurivillianum, Testaceopallidium, Dilatatum, and Discretum groups". Bulletin of the Chicago Academy of Sciences. 11 (4): 82–101. 

D. R. Lauck (1964). "A monograph of the genus Belostoma (Hemiptera, Part III. B. Triangulum, Bergi, Minor, Bifoveolatum, and Flumineum groups". Bulletin of the Chicago Academy of Sciences. 11 (5): 102–154. 

A. S. Menke (1960). "A taxonomic study of the genus Abedus Stål (Hemiptera, Belostomatidae)". University of California Publications in Entomology. 16 (8): 393–440. 

R. L. Smith (1974). "Life history of Abedus herberti in Central Arizona" (PDF). Psyche. 81 (2): 272–283. doi:10.1155/1974/83959. 

R. T. Schuh & J. A. Slater (1995). "True Bugs of the World (Hemiptera:Heteroptera): Classification and Natural History". Cornell University Press.

Misschien nog beter: contact op nemen met

Hawaii Biological Survey Staff

Dan A. Polhemus, Ph.D.

Research Associate - Entomology

phone: 808-847-8204

fax: 808-847-8252

email: bugman[at]bishopmuseum[dot] org 

of

Nico Nieser

Beiden lijken me nogal wat ervaring te hebben opgebouwd over wantsen in die regio.

Zij hebben dus wellicht een nog betere kijk op hedendaagse info!

Groetjes

Thierry

I agree with Andreas, it is a spore or a conidium of fungi or plants. With all those segments inside it doesn`t look like a parasite.

sometimes the egg concentration maybe very low. Só you need to centrifuge it. That way you need to consider the volume you use in centrifugation. Ex: If the egg concentration is to low, you need to centrifuge it. When get the sediment at bottom put in hemocytometer as Agnieszka said. Than multiply to ml.I use to check helmint egg

thanks mr.arvind singh, http://www.microbioservices.com/naegleria-fowleri-detection-and-analysis-in-water, this method i think can be used in low cost research...

Thanks for the feedback Campbell! I was trying to figure the temperature base that Stein et al. (2005) used, but am having difficulty. I imagine that a difference in development time regarding degree-days could depend on that base temperature, if it differed from 10C. I'll reach out by e-mail soon!

I have found this paper. Thank you anyway Jan!

This parasite looks like a leech, Trachelobdella lubrica.

We have found this leech attaching around the eyes of this fish on the paper you mentioned above

Thanks 

Marta and Vanessa,

I could try but you know - OK for several groups of helminth parasites, and with "increasing ignorance" for other groups.

Cheers

Boyko

It is difficult to tell from this image. There does appear to be polar capsules, but I suppose this could also be an artifact of refraction. Still, it certainly looks like a polar filament within the ovoid objects shown. In an earlier answer you say that you did not observe polar capsules. How did you rule that out? Do you have another photo?

Assuming these are polar capsules, this could be a Thelohanellus species as proposed by others. The size is within a reasonable range and overall appearance is consistent (accounting for the image quality). Another possibility might be free polar capsules from another species where the spores were broken open. Were these frozen samples?

If you are trying to get a better photo, make the squash thinner. You can also mince the muscle in saline on a glass plate (or something similar), then squeeze between 2 plates an collect the liquid in a 15ml conical tube. Let that settle and pipette off some material from the bottom (should contain spores). That will allow for a thinner prep. Adjust condenser, iris and filters as necessary to cut down on refraction. Do you have DIC?

You might also consider submitting a piece of the muscle tissue for histological processing. Stain with Giemsa will really show the polar capsules.

Good luck

I agree with Dr.Owen. However another mite Dermanyssus gallinae commonly  enter en masse into the nasopharyngeal system in dead birds. These mites might have accidentally entered behind the eyeballs.

Hi Andrew - thanks for that - that's very helpful!  I'll keep an eye out for the review...

Andy

This the one of the fundamental questions asked to scientists, which is boiled down to “Why study something if I can’t get money from it or improve human health.” In part this is a question related to the study of anything in the universe. I would personally say that in some cases the actual value is in gaining knowledge of the world we live in. That is it, there is no more. However, in the broad scope of things if we never asked basic questions about anything we would never have progressed beyond living in caves. Perhaps the answer is that it makes you happy to learn about these parasites and so do other people. If they did not gain some sort of enjoyment and fulfillment from it the science would be dead.

Can you ask a this person Dra. Edith Estrada Benegas 

estradae@colpos.mx and edith_ev@yahoo.com.mx she is specialist of acari and she can help your cuestion

Cheers Armando Burgos

Several eels were examined  in New Caledonia and other Pacific islands in a survey in 2003. No Anguillicola found. See attached paper.

If you want to keep you snail alive I would suggest X-rays are actually rather likely to kill them.

Light might work on live snails.  Dead ones tend to be too opaque.

Sometimes you can hold live snails in fresh water and observe cercaria emerging into the water.

For CMR studies several programmes are available and can be easily downloaded), among them the following two are widely used:-

1. programme capture- you can estimate population abundance and density

2.programme MARK- to estimate abumndance, density and survival rate.

A number of papers are available

Dear Efrain,

These structures are too large to be a egg of Taeniidae.

Do not rule out the possibility of it to be a vegetal structure.

Best regards,

Hudson

Dear Gerald

I recommend you to use the service of Diagnostic Assistance of the CDC for Parasites. This is very useful. I have used it before.

Please check this link: http://www.cdc.gov/dpdx/contact.html

There, is also the information required to send the images for diagnosis.

Finally, please if you consider this answer appropriate, please upvote it using the green up arrow click. Thanks.

STATA, for example. There is the function in "statistics->count outcome->negative binomial regression: for parasite abundance it's ok. In statistics->binary outcome->logistic regression: for parasite prevalence, coded 0-1 (o=negative; 1=positive). Also in R you can build generalised linear models http://127.0.0.1:15506/library/stats/html/glm.html

Good job!

LD results from a non-random association among alleles at 2 or more loci. This may be a result of physical linkage: the alleles are on the same chromosome, perhaps very close together, or in some cases, 2 loci considered to be different are actually the same (b/c two differing primer sets were constructed that amplify the same locus). Assuming physical linkage is not the cause, LD can arise through drift, selection, and/or gene flow. Popgen programs like STRUCTURE assume that data is in Linkage equilibrium, and loci that are in LD can lead to the program overstating popgen structure. See: http://www.nature.com/hdy/journal/v99/n4/full/6801010a.html

follow deMan's ratio which is universally accepted. detailed account can be found in book: Laboratory methods for work with plant and soil nematodes (1986), eds. J. F. Southey, (London; Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food)

Hi Carly,

it is very difficult to estimate total parasite burden in individual host using intravital diagnostic methods. All recently known methods (coprology, biochemical and immunological as well as molecular techniques) have certain disadvantages.There are many factors that can affect results of frequently used faecal flotation techniques, as you know. Molecular methods are very sensitive, however quantification of helminth parasites using these methods has not yet been reliably resolved. In my experinece the only possible way how accurately estimate total parasite burden is necropsy. 

Jarda

Dear Robert, I agree with you. I have no information about any publications about intracellular Phytomonads. However, please keep in mind that to date very little work has been carried out on this plant parasite and its life cycle.

Ziziphus mauritiana are commonly found Indian plant species where trips along with Leptothrips are inhabitant, but we don't known the exact cause of it's association.

I believe that the following paper is good for your question

Arez, A. P., Lopes, D., Pinto, J., Franco, A. S., Snounou, G., & Do Rosário, V. E. (2000).  Plasmodium sp.: Optimal Protocols for PCR Detection of Low Parasite Numbers from Mosquito (Anopheles sp.) Samples. Experimental parasitology, 94(4), 269-272.

pleas let me know if it  is good for you

You can order eggs for each of these species through the MR4 facility:

I hope this helps

Thanks to all. Unfortunately, cysticerci of T. pisiformis I'm looking for are in dead hares, in peritoneum and not in muscle. Fortunately they are easily visible without a microscope (at least when they are mature) but unfortunately sparse in the peritoneum and often attached one another so it should be quite difficult to count them with a standardized method.

On Mauritius there are several examples of  exotic birds that were flourishing, that declined and were replaced by a subsequent introduction.  The Java Sparrow was replaced by the House Sparrow, the Fire Finch was replaced by the Common Waxbill, and the Cape Canary replaced by the Village Weaver.  Also less convincingly the Madgascar Lovebird was replaced by the Ring-necked Parakeet.  These cases are published in a paper I wrote a long while ago, and summarised in Lost Land of the Dodo, by Cheke and Hume.

”Gibellula on jumping spiders?”

on which genus/genera of jumping spiders?

You may want to look in Beck's dissertation. I had a cursory look through two of his papers and while they give extensive discussion of the life history of the parasite and its effect on the host, nowhere did I see any prevalence data. However, he did mention that such information was present in his 1979 dissertation. The Beck and Cowell paper on the host may also have some prevalence data, but I didn't look it over.

See Beck's 1979 paper in Parasitology. I wasn't able to download it, but the abstract states some very high prevalence levels: http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=4117960&fileId=S003118200005383X

It may be a zooplankton. for more information about that , you should send that for a parasitology laboratory.

Hi Sibylle

I assume you have been in touch with John Marshall Clark at UMass. His lab runs what is, as far as I am aware the only long term viable in vitro reared louse colony. There are several publications so to start have a look at

also

Yoon KS et al. An improved in vitro rearing system for the human head louse allows

the determination of resistance to formulated pediculicides. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology 86 (2006) 195–202.

We have tried it in our lab and it is immensely time consuming to set up and manage and the attrition rate is monumental in the early stages. Also you need to have a steady supply of consistent blood. Minor changes in blood source, type, etc. seem to have big impacts on attractiveness, engorgement rates, fecundity, and growth of juveniles. In the end we could not commit sufficient resources to it, especially as our audit indicated it was not commercially viable - cheaper and more reliable to collect them from the wild as and when we needed them.

Having said that I'm not aiming to put you off, just showing its not a piece of cake. Incidentally it may be easier starting with lab reared body lice. Now is your opportunity to get some as Robin Todd at i2L, Inc., in Baltimore is winding his rabbit reared colony up in the next two to three months so if you miss those you won't get a second chance.

If we can help in any way let me know otherwise it would be good to hear how you get along.

Ian

Dear Richu,

There are four types of Dengue virus (DENV -1, -2, -3, and -4). You can use multiplex RT-PCR to identifies different serotypes of dengue virus.

If the Ascaris egg is belonging to A. suum, a parasite specific to pig and the possible route of transmission to wolf by ingestion of infested pig.

Hey, images 1, 4 and 5 could all be tapeworm eggs belonging Diphyllobothrium, Spirometra, or perhaps fluke eggs such as Paragonimus, Alaria, or Nanophyetus. Image 5 does look like Alaria, but image quality could be better. I see no hooks in image 2, so it cannot be concluded whether this is Taenia (or even Echinococcus). Therefore, image 2 is inconclusive. To my knowledge, taenid egg morphology does not allow species identification. You did not include a size measure for image 3. It could be an Isospora oocyst or a Sarcocystis sporocyst, but it depends on the size. It does not look like a Taenid egg.

It is true to some extent but we have to make the malaria control activities long lasting and sustainable while seeking additional methods of malaria control and prevention such as vaccines.

We either choose to continues using long lasting insecticide nets or loose more children from malaria.

Hi Gomes

Thank you for your answer.

But when I worked by LPT Method on mentioned ticks, mortality in control groups was above 20% (in the closed Insectarium (3*3*2 meter) with Temperature between 27-28 centigrades and RH between 70-80%), whereas in other ticks such as Boophilus annulatus and Rhipicephalus bursa in this condition by LPT method mortality in control groups was between 0-10%. Why???

Mix 1 µl of blood with 24 µl of 0.85% ammonium chloride and put on ice for a few minutes. The erythrocytes will be lysed and you can easily count the tryps.

This is a good question, Ajit. An item that comes immediately to mind and I don't know if you would classify the Verroa Mite as a parasite to the Honey Bee, but I consider it so, as it is weakening the Honey Bee Population worldwide. A researcher who noted this trend about 10-12 years ago noted to me that he thought it was a GMO-spawned species that was coming out of the United States and Brazil at the time, but have not seen anything conclusive on that. But as it stands now I believe the Honey Bee population is down about 80-802% worldwide, which as you know as the principal pollinators could bring us serious famine in many nations.

E. multilocularis commonly occurs in the posterior part of small intestine and rarely were found in anterior part. Even during very intensive infection, when they are distributed in whole intestine, in posterior part they are usualy signifficantly more frequent.

From my investigation: "...The tapeworms were most frequently found in the posterior part of the small intestine (95% of infected foxes), then in the middle part (80% of foxes), and in the anterior part (55% of foxes).No tapeworms occurred only in the anterior part..".- I attached the artice with full description of these results.

regards

Jacek

Hi again,

Thanks for the names - i have never heard about these people. When I think about great parasitologists in Finland, I rather think about Tellervo Valtonen (who worked with Poulin and Marcogliese among others), probably because she has been working on fish parasites, my research system. But you are right and I actually asked Tellervo about parasite identification a while ago.

Concerning the dilution effect, I also think it is not really clear and I would rather say that increasing community can sometimes lead to a dilution of infection risk. However this is problematic for many reasons, the main one being that different processes act altogether to generate these patterns (e.g. predation, decoy hosts). Here I was only talking about dilution by the presence of decoy hosts. Moreover, the statement of dilution also sounds a bit paradoxical as community here refers to all the species present in the ecosystem but most studies do not take in account parasites as part of this biodiversity. Interactions between parasites (for instance co-infecting parasites) can change the outcome of a host-parasite interactions and I think that ignoring this can lead to wrong statements or result interpretation of monitoring data. May I ask your opinion about this and about the dilution effect in general as well? It would be nice hearing from other people about this topic too. Thanks in advance.

Calculating the Morans I statistic will give you an idea if spatial autocorrelation is present in the dataset (global). Anselins local Morans I will allow you to see where autocorrelation is happening. Also Ripley's K statistic test for autocorrelation with respect to the distances between point (using Monte Carlo simulation. ArcMap, GeoDa, and R all have tools to investigate autocorrelation (I'm sure there others as well) In Arcmap you can find the tools under the Spatial Statistics heading in the tool box

The tissue samples (containing, for example, metacercariae of some trematode) can be immersed in a digestion solution (0.85% NaCl in distilled water with 1% pepsin and 1% HCl, pH 2) for one hour at 37 °C.

It is possibile to get a more detailed outline? You know: in all Europe Rubella Vaccine is mandatory and we're experiencing a significant resurgence of malaria in Mediterranean regions (at the moment, Albania and Peloponnesian Greece)...

It seems that there are plenty of studies about Oribatid mites, however it is quite hard to find a proper key for identification European species. I would recommend articles below describing field and lab studies from different parts of the globe. Good luck!

1) Laboratory infections of Scheloribates spp. (oribatid mites) with Moniezia expansa and M. benedeni. J Helminthol. 1976 Sep;50(3):153-6

2) Seasonal variation of oribatid mite (Acarina) populations and their relationship to sheep cestodiasis in Argentina. Vet Parasitol. 1992 Apr;42(1-2):157-61

3) Infectivity of Moniezia benedeni and Moniezia expansa to oribatid mites from Ohio and Georgia. Vet Parasitol. 1992 Dec;45(1-2):101-10.

4) Oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatida) as intermediate hosts of tapeworms of the Family Anoplocephalidae (Cestoda) and the transmission of Moniezia expansa cysticercoids in South Africa. Onderstepoort J Vet Res. 2000 Mar;67(1):49-55.

5)Oribatid mites as intermediate hosts of Thysanosoma actinioides (Cestoda: Anoplocephalidae): a preliminary study.Vet Parasitol. 2002 Jan 28;103(3):267-71.

6)Laboratory and field studies on oribatid mites as intermediate host of Moniezia expansa infecting Egytptian sheep. J Egypt Soc Parasitol. 2004 Apr;34(1):305-14.