Search results for "cestoda"

Gene expression patterns underlying parasite-induced alterations in host behaviour and life history

2015

Many parasites manipulate their hosts' phenotype. In particular, parasites with complex life cycles take control of their intermediate hosts' behaviour and life history to increase transmission to their definitive host. The proximate mechanisms underlying these parasite-induced alterations are poorly understood. The cestode Anomotaenia brevis affects the behaviour, life history and morphology of parasitized Temnothorax nylanderi ants and indirectly of their unparasitized nestmates. To gain insights on how parasites alter host phenotypes, we contrast brain gene expression patterns of T. nylanderi workers parasitized with the cestode, their unparasitized nestmates and unparasitized workers fr…

A Visitor of Tropical Waters: First Record of a Clymene Dolphin (Stenella clymene) Off the Patagonian Coast of Argentina, With Comments on Diet and M…

2021

The poorly known Clymene dolphin (Stenella clymene) is a small oceanic cetacean distributed in tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean. In this study, we report, for the first time, a vagrant individual of Clymene dolphin in Argentina (Rada Tilly) that represents the current southern-most record for this cetacean species. We provide a molecular identification of the dolphin, based on partial sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, generated from DNA extracted from its metazoan parasites. Three prey species, namely Argentine hake, Patagonian squid and lobster krill were identified from hard pieces collected in the stomach. Seven metazoan parasite taxa (three in adult …

Intraspecific variability in host manipulation by parasites

2011

8 pages; International audience; Manipulative parasites have the capacity to alter a broad range of phenotypic traits in their hosts, extending from colour, morphology and behaviour. While significant attention has been devoted to describing the diversity of host manipulation among parasite clades, and testing the adaptive value of phenotypic traits that can be manipulated, there is increasing evidence that variation exists in the frequency and intensity of the changes displayed by parasitized individuals within single host-manipulative parasite systems. Such variability occurs within individuals, between individuals of a same population, and across populations. Here we review the non-genet…

Cestode parasites release extracellular vesicles with microRNAs and immunodiagnostic protein cargo.

2017

Intercellular communication is crucial in multiple aspects of cell biology. This interaction can be mediated by several mechanisms including extracellular vesicle (EV) transfer. EV secretion by parasites has been reported in protozoans, trematodes and nematodes. Here we report that this mechanism is present in three different species of cestodes, Taenia crassiceps, Mesocestoides corti and Echinococcus multilocularis. To confirm this we determined, in vitro, the presence of EVs in culture supernatants by transmission electron microscopy. Interestingly, while T. crassiceps and M. corti metacestodes secrete membranous structures into the culture media, similar vesicles were observed in the int…

The influence of food competition and host specificity on the transmission of Triaenophorus crassus (Cestoda) and Cystidicola farionis (Nematoda) to …

2000

Abstract As a superior competitor for planktonic food, vendace ( Coregonus albula ), when abundant, is expected to displace whitefish ( Coregonus lavaretus ) from feeding on plankton and to force it to rely more on benthic food. The predicted result would be a reduced abundance of the copepod-transmitted cestode Triaenophorus crassus in whitefish, but an increase in the abundance of the nematode Cystidicola farionis transmitted via benthic amphipods. We studied the occurrence of both parasites in whitefish during 1991–1996 in three interconnected areas at Lake Saimaa, Finland, where the densities of the vendace stocks varied due to natural fluctuation in year-class strengths. In accordance …

Human Bertiella studeri in Spain, Probably of African Origin

1997

A mature tapeworm and gravid proglottids of Bertiella studeri were reported from the stools of a 33-year-old pregnant Spanish woman. The patient had spent the six months preceding this discovery in Kenya. The evidence suggests a case of parasitism imported to Spain from the African continent. The patient presented no symptoms related to the parasite and the discovery in stools of a number of active, white structures led her to collect them. A morphologic and morphometric description of the material obtained is presented. Mebendazole failed to remove the parasite but niclosamide was effective.

Arterial hypertension due to primary adrenal hydatid cyst.

2002

First survey on zoonotic helminthosis in urban brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) in Spain and associated public health considerations.

2018

Abstract The brown rat, Rattus norvegicus, with a worldwide distribution, is the most commensal species among synanthropic rodents, since its main habitat, in urban as well as in rural areas, is always linked to humans. Therefore, people living in close proximity to rodent populations can be exposed to infection. Whereas bacteria and viruses are the best known rat-associated zoonoses in urban environments, the role of brown rats as reservoirs for helminth parasites and the associated risk for humans are less well known. Specifically, this role has not been analyzed in Spain to date. A total of 100 R. norvegicus trapped in the sewage system (n = 85), and parks (n = 15) of Barcelona was exami…

DNA barcoding reveals different cestode helminth species in northern European marine and freshwater ringed seals

2021

Three subspecies of the ringed seal (Pusa hispida) are found in northeastern Europe: P. h. botnica in the Baltic Sea, P. h saimensis in Lake Saimaa in Finland, and P. h. ladogensis in Lake Ladoga in Russia. We investigated the poorly-known cestode helminth communities of these closely related but ecologically divergent subspecies using COI barcode data. Our results show that, while cestodes from the Baltic Sea represent Schistocephalus solidus, all worms from the two lakes are identified as Ligula intestinalis, a species that has previously not been reported from seals. The observed shift in cestode communities appears to be driven by differential availability of intermediate fish host spec…

Intestinal helminth communities of the long-finned pilot whale (Globicephala melas) off the Faroe Islands.

1993

SUMMARYThe intestines of 170 long-finned pilot whales, Globicephala melas, caught off the Faroe Islands (N.E. Atlantic) were examined for helminth parasites. Eight species were detected but only 4 occurred in at least 10% of the sample. No core or recurrent group of species were identified and no correlations between abundances of species were significant. Diversity values were far below those reported for other endotherms. Colonization by helminths was random, whales not being readily colonized. These features point to largely unpredictable, isolationist infracommunities, there being little potential for inter-specific interactions. Older hosts tended to harbour more diverse infracommuniti…