Stacy Brian A, Foley Allen M, Greiner Ellis, Herbst Lawrence H, Bolten Alan, Klein Paul, Manire Charles A, Jacobson Elliott R
University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine, Large Animal Clinical Sciences, PO Box 100136, Gainesville, Florida 32610, USA.
Dis Aquat Organ. 2010 Apr 9;89(3):237-59. doi: 10.3354/dao02195.
Spirorchiid trematodes are implicated as an important cause of stranding and mortality in sea turtles worldwide. However, the impact of these parasites on sea turtle health is poorly understood due to biases in study populations and limited or missing data for some host species and regions, including the southeastern United States. We examined necropsy findings and parasitological data from 89 loggerhead Caretta caretta and 59 green turtles Chelonia mydas that were found dead or moribund (i.e. stranded) in Florida (USA) and evaluated the role of spirorchiidiasis in the cause of death. High prevalence of infection in the stranding population was observed, and most infections were regarded as incidental to the cause of death. Spirorchiidiasis was causal or contributory to death in some cases; however, notable host injury and/or large numbers of parasites were observed in some animals, including nutritionally robust turtles, with no apparent relationship to cause of death. New spirorchiid species records for the region were documented and identified genera included Neospirorchis, Hapalotrema, Carettacola, and Learedius. Parasites inhabited and were associated with injury and inflammation in a variety of anatomic locations, including large arteries, the central nervous system, endocrine organs, and the gastrointestinal tract. These findings provide essential information on the diversity of spirorchiids found in Florida sea turtles, as well as prevalence of infection and the spectrum of associated pathological lesions. Several areas of needed study are identified with regard to potential health implications in the turtle host, and findings caution against over-interpretation in individual cases.
旋尾吸虫被认为是全球海龟搁浅和死亡的一个重要原因。然而，由于研究群体存在偏差，以及包括美国东南部在内的一些宿主物种和地区的数据有限或缺失，这些寄生虫对海龟健康的影响仍知之甚少。我们检查了89只蠵龟（Caretta caretta）和59只绿海龟（Chelonia mydas）的尸检结果和寄生虫学数据，这些海龟在美国佛罗里达州被发现死亡或濒死（即搁浅），并评估了旋尾吸虫病在死亡原因中的作用。在搁浅群体中观察到高感染率，且大多数感染被认为与死亡原因无关。在某些情况下，旋尾吸虫病是死亡的原因或促成因素；然而，在一些动物中，包括营养状况良好的海龟，观察到明显的宿主损伤和/或大量寄生虫，但与死亡原因没有明显关系。记录了该地区旋尾吸虫的新物种记录，鉴定出的属包括新旋尾吸虫属（Neospirorchis）、哈帕吸虫属（Hapalotrema）、蠵龟吸虫属（Carettacola）和利氏吸虫属（Learedius）。寄生虫栖息于包括大动脉、中枢神经系统、内分泌器官和胃肠道在内的各种解剖位置，并与损伤和炎症有关。这些发现提供了关于佛罗里达州海龟体内旋尾吸虫多样性、感染率以及相关病理病变谱的重要信息。确定了几个关于海龟宿主潜在健康影响的需要研究的领域，研究结果提醒不要对个别病例进行过度解读。
