Search results for "Parasites"
showing 10 items of 142 documents
Surveillance of foodborne parasitic diseases in Europe in a One Health approach
2021
In 2012, WHO/FAO ranked 24 foodborne parasites (FBP) using multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) to provide risk assessors with a basis for prioritising control of highly ranked FBP on the global level. One conclusion was that ranking may differ substantially per region. In Europe, the same methodology was used to rank FBP of relevance for Europe. Of the 24 FBP, the top-five prioritised FBP were identified for Europe as Echinococcus multilocularis, Toxoplasma gondii, Trichinella spiralis, E. granulosus, and Cryptosporidium spp., all of which are zoonotic. The objective of the present study was to provide an overview of surveillance and reporting systems in Europe for these top five priorit…
Potential Influence of Helminth Molecules on COVID-19 Pathology
2020
In recent months, the parasitology research community has been tasked with investigation of the influence of parasite coinfection on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outcomes. Herein, we share our approach to analyze the effect of the trematode Fasciola hepatica as a modulator of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and of COVID-19 pathology.
Towards a Unified Functional Trait Framework for Parasites
2019
Trait-based research holds high potential to unveil ecological and evolutionary processes. Functional traits are fitness-related characteristics of individuals, which are measured at individual level and defined without using information external to the individual. Despite the usefulness of the functional approach to understand the performance of individuals in ecosystems, and parasitism being the most common life-history strategy on Earth, studies based on functional traits of parasites are still scarce. Since the choice of functional traits is a critical step for any study, we propose a core list of seven functional traits of metazoan parasites, related to three universal challenges faced…
Tracking zoonotic pathogens using blood-sucking flies as 'flying syringes'
2017
About 60% of emerging infectious diseases in humans are of zoonotic origin. Their increasing number requires the development of new methods for early detection and monitoring of infectious agents in wildlife. Here, we investigated whether blood meals from hematophagous flies could be used to identify the infectious agents circulating in wild vertebrates. To this aim, 1230 blood-engorged flies were caught in the forests of Gabon. Identified blood meals (30%) were from 20 vertebrate species including mammals, birds and reptiles. Among them, 9% were infected by different extant malaria parasites among which some belonged to known parasite species, others to new parasite species or to parasite …
Importance of Sequence and Timing in Parasite Coinfections
2019
Coinfections by multiple parasites predominate in the wild. Interactionsbetween parasites can be antagonistic, neutral, or facilitative, and they canhave significant implications for epidemiology, disease dynamics, and evolu-tion of virulence. Coinfections commonly result from sequential exposure ofhosts to different parasites. We argue that the sequential nature of coinfectionsis important for the consequences of infection in both natural and man-madeenvironments. Coinfections accumulate during host lifespan, determining thestructure of the parasite infracommunity. Interactions within the parasite com-munity and their joint effect on the host individual potentially shape evolution ofparasi…
Giardia intestinalis and Fructose Malabsorption: A Frequent Association
2019
Nowadays, scientific studies are emerging on the possible etiological role of intestinal parasites in functional digestive disorders. Our study was carried out with healthy individuals (control group
Parasite fauna and community structure of bathydemersal fishes: Notacanthus bonaparte (Osteichthyes), Etmopterus spinax and Deania profundorum (Chond…
2017
Resumen El mar profundo es el mayor bioma de la tierra y el menos estudiado (Ramirez-Llodra et al. 2010). Si bien inicialmente el mar profundo se consideró como un ambiente muy estable con variaciones muy leves por debajo de la termoclina permanente, los estudios realizados en las últimas décadas indican que el mar profundo es un ambiente más dinámico de lo que se pensaba (Gage 2003, Ramirez-Llodra et al. 2010). La variabilidad natural de los procesos que tiene lugar en los hábitats del mar profundo tiene su origen en diferentes factores entre los que se encuentran las corrientes horizontales de masas de agua de grandes dimensiones dirigidas por las corrientes circunglobales, las cuales pue…
Gynecological Manifestations, Histopathological Findings, and Schistosoma-Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction Results Among Women With Schistosoma hae…
2015
Schistosoma haematobium may cause pathology in the urinary and genital tracts. In the urinary tract, morbidity is correlated with intensity of infection, as indicated by the number of eggs excreted in the urine [1]. Up to 75% of women excreting S. haematobium ova in the urine may have ova in the lower genital tract. However, female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) may also occur in the absence of urinary egg excretion [2, 3]. FGS is rarely seen without use of a colposcope and is often overlooked even by those who have this tool. In remote areas, where most patients live, the cost of the equipment, the logistical difficulties associated with light sources, electricity, and clean instruments, as…
Behavioural adaptations of argulid parasites (Crustacea: Branchiura) to major challenges in their life cycle.
2015
Fish lice (Argulus spp.) are obligate ectoparasites, which contrary to most aquatic parasites, retain the ability to swim freely throughout the whole of their life. In fish farms, they can quickly increase in numbers and without effective control cause argulosis, which results in the reduced growth and survival of their fish hosts. The morphology of Argulus spp, including their sensory organs, is suitable for both parasitism and free-swimming. By spending a considerable amount of time away from their host, these parasites risk being excessively dispersed, which could endanger mating success. Here we present a review of recent studies on the behaviour of Argulus spp, especially the aggregati…
Carotenoids of two freshwater amphipod species (Gammarus pulex and G. roeseli) and their common acanthocephalan parasite Polymorphus minutus
2004
Carotenoid compositions of two freshwater Gammarus species (Crustacea: Amphipoda) and of their common acanthocephalan parasite Polymorphus minutus were characterized. The effect of carotenoid uptake by the parasite was addressed by comparing the carotenoid content of uninfected and infected female hosts. Using high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), co-chromatography of reference pigments and electron ionization mass spectrometry of collected HPLC fractions (EI-MS), several xanthophylls and non-polar compounds were identified. Seven kinds of carotenoids, mainly xanthophylls, were identified in gammarids. Astaxanthin was predominant, amounting to 40 wt.% of total carotenoid in both uninf…