Keeney Devon B, Lagrue Clément, Bryan-Walker Kim, Khan Nicola, Leung Tommy L F, Poulin Robert
Department of Zoology, University of Otago, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand.
Exp Parasitol. 2008 Sep;120(1):15-20. doi: 10.1016/j.exppara.2008.04.010. Epub 2008 Apr 14.
We examined the utility of fluorescent fatty acid analog dyes for labeling larval trematodes to use in experimental infections. Our goals were to identify two dyes that label larval trematodes belonging to the species Maritrema novaezealandensis and Coitocaecum parvum, determine if the dyes influence survival and infectivity of larval trematodes and/or host mortality, and if larval trematodes labeled with alternative dyes could be distinguished post-infection. The two dyes tested, BODIPY FL C(12) and BODIPY 558/568 C(12), successfully labeled all treated larval trematodes, did not influence cercariae survival or infectivity, and did not influence host mortality in either host-parasite system. All larval parasites were fluorescent and distinguishable after 5 days in amphipod intermediate hosts. In addition, larval Acanthoparyphium sp. were strongly fluorescent with both dyes after 5 weeks within cockle hosts. This method should be extremely useful for experimental studies using trematode-host systems as models for addressing a range of ecological and evolutionary questions.
