Lange M K, Penagos-Tabares F, Hirzmann J, Failing K, Schaper R, Van Bourgonie Y R, Backeljau T, Hermosilla C, Taubert A
Institute of Parasitology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, 35392, Giessen, Germany.
Institute of Parasitology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, 35392, Giessen, Germany; CIBAV Research Group, Veterinary Medicine School, University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia.
Vet Parasitol. 2018 Apr 30;254:120-130. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2018.03.011. Epub 2018 Mar 12.
Metastrongyloid parasites represent sparsely studied parasites of dogs and cats in Germany. Recent European surveys indicate that these parasites are spreading in Europe. Actual data on prevalence of Angiostrongylus vasorum in dogs and foxes reveal several endemic foci in Germany. However, actual data on the prevalence of A. vasorum and other metastrongyloid lungworm larvae in a wide range of slug and snail intermediate hosts, such as Arion lusitanicus, are missing for Germany. To fill this gap, we conducted an epidemiological survey on native German slugs in selected regions of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate. The focus was on slugs, because in study areas slugs appear to be more abundant than snails. Slugs were collected throughout different seasons of the year in areas that were previously proven to be hyperendemic for A. vasorum fox infections. Overall, a total of 2701 slugs were collected and examined for lungworm larvae via artificial digestion. The number of A. vasorum larvae per slug varied considerably (1-546 larvae per specimen). Some hotspot areas with high A. vasorum prevalence in slugs (up to 19.4%) were identified. The overall A. vasorum prevalence varied with season with largest number of slugs infected in summer (9.1%) and lowest number in winter (0.8%). The current study revealed a total A. vasorum prevalence of 4.7% in slugs based on microscopic analyses. Confirmation of lungworm species was made by specific duplex-real-time PCRs. Hence, these data demonstrate that final hosts are at a permanent risk for A. vasorum infections during all seasons when living in investigated areas. Besides A. vasorum, other lungworm larvae were also detected, such as Crenosoma vulpis (the fox lungworm, 2.3%) and Aelurostrongylus abstrusus (feline lungworm, 0.2%).
后圆线虫类寄生虫在德国是对犬猫研究较少的寄生虫。近期的欧洲调查表明这些寄生虫正在欧洲蔓延。关于犬和狐狸体内血管圆线虫流行情况的实际数据显示德国存在几个地方性疫源地。然而，德国缺乏关于在多种蛞蝓和蜗牛中间宿主（如葡萄牙蛞蝓）中血管圆线虫及其他后圆线虫类肺线虫幼虫流行情况的实际数据。为填补这一空白，我们在黑森州和莱茵兰 - 普法尔茨州的选定地区对德国本土蛞蝓进行了一项流行病学调查。重点是蛞蝓，因为在研究区域蛞蝓似乎比蜗牛更为常见。在先前被证明是血管圆线虫狐狸感染高度流行的地区，全年不同季节收集蛞蝓。总共收集了2701只蛞蝓，并通过人工消化法检查肺线虫幼虫。每只蛞蝓体内血管圆线虫幼虫的数量差异很大（每个样本1 - 546条幼虫）。确定了一些蛞蝓中血管圆线虫高流行率的热点地区（高达19.4%）。血管圆线虫的总体流行率随季节变化，夏季感染蛞蝓的数量最多（9.1%），冬季最少（0.8%）。基于显微镜分析，当前研究显示蛞蝓中血管圆线虫的总体流行率为4.7%。通过特异性双链实时PCR对肺线虫种类进行了确认。因此，这些数据表明，在调查区域生活的终末宿主在所有季节都面临血管圆线虫感染的持续风险。除了血管圆线虫，还检测到了其他肺线虫幼虫，如狐肺线虫（2.3%）和猫肺线虫（0.2%）。
