Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T17:56:43.189Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Nematode biology and larval development of Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida, Thelaziidae) in the drosophilid intermediate host in Europe and China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 July 2005

D. OTRANTO ,
R. P. LIA ,
C. CANTACESSI ,
G. TESTINI ,
A. TROCCOLI ,
J. L. SHEN  and
Z. X. WANG
D. OTRANTO
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Health and Welfare, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari, P.O. Box 7, 70010, Valenzano, Bari, Italy
R. P. LIA
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Health and Welfare, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari, P.O. Box 7, 70010, Valenzano, Bari, Italy
C. CANTACESSI
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Health and Welfare, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari, P.O. Box 7, 70010, Valenzano, Bari, Italy
G. TESTINI
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Health and Welfare, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari, P.O. Box 7, 70010, Valenzano, Bari, Italy
A. TROCCOLI
Affiliation:
Institute for Plant Protection, Section of Bari - C.N.R. Bari, Italy
J. L. SHEN
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032 P.R. China
Z. X. WANG
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032 P.R. China
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Thelazia callipaeda, commonly known as the ‘oriental eyeworm’, has been recently reported in Italy and other European countries. The insect/s that act as intermediate hosts and details of larval development inside the vector remain unclear. In order to (1) demonstrate the species of fly that may act as vector/s for T. callipaeda in southern Italy (Site A) and China (Site B) and (2) describe the larval development of the nematode in the body of flies, 847 Phortica (Drosophilidae) flies were collected from the above two sites, each with a history of human and/or canine thelaziosis. Flies were identified as Phortica variegata (245 – site A) and Phortica okadai (602 – site B), experimentally infected by 1st-stage larvae (L1), kept at different temperatures and dissected daily until day 180 post-infection (p.i.). Dead flies from site A were subjected to specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay to detect T. callipaeda. To demonstrate the role of Phortica as vectors of T. callipaeda, 3rd-stage larvae (L3) recovered from the proboscis of flies were deposited onto the cornea of the eyes of dogs and rabbits. Following dissection, 3 (2·9%) of P. variegata in site A were found to be infected by L3 in the proboscis on days +14, +21 and +53 p.i., compared with 26 (18·4%) of Phortica flies recorded as being positive by PCR. Sequences from positive PCR products were 99% identical to sequences of the corresponding species available in GenBank (AY207464). At site B, 106 (17·6%) of 602 dissected P. okadai were found to be infected by T. callipaeda larvae (different stages) and in total 62 L3 were recovered from the proboscis of 34 (5·6%) flies. The shortest time in which L3 were found was at day +14, +17, +19, and +50 p.i. respectively, depending on the environmental temperatures. Of 30 flies overwintered for 6 months, 6 L3 were detected at day +180 p.i. in 3 flies (10%). The biology of larval development was reconstructed on the basis of the dissection of 602 P. okadai-infected flies and the morphology of larval stages in the insect body described. The present work provides evidence that P. variegata and P. okadai act as vectors for T. callipaeda in southern Europe and in China, respectively. The phenomenon of overwintering is described here for the first time for T. callipaeda and discussed. Finally, the relationship between T. callipaeda and its fly vector is considered in light of disease prophylaxis and to model its dissemination into habitats and environments favourable to Phortica flies.

Keywords

Thelazia callipaedavectorPhortica variegataPhortica okadaieyedogshumansNematodahost-parasite
Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 131 , Issue 6 , December 2005 , pp. 847 - 855
Copyright
© 2005 Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Anderson, R. C. ( 2000). Nematode Parasites of Vertebrates. Their Development and Transmission, 2nd Edn, CABI Publishing, Guilford, UK.
Bachellerie, J. P. and Qu, L. H. ( 1993). Ribosomal RNA probes for detection and identification of species. In Methods in Molecular Biology. Vol. 21: Protocols in Molecular Parasitology ( ed. Hyde, J. E.), pp. 250–254. Humana Press. Inc., Totowa, NJ, USA.CrossRef
Bächli, G., Vilela, C. R., Andersson Esher, S. and Saura, A. ( 2005). The Drosophilidae (Diptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica, Vol. 39. Brill, Leiden.
Bianciardi, P. and Otranto, D. ( 2005). Treatment of dog thelaziosis caused by Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida, Thelaziidae) using a topical formulation of imidacloprid 10 and moxidectin 2·5. Veterinary Parasitology 129, 89–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chermette, R., Guillot, J. and Bussiéras, J. ( 2004). Canine ocular thelaziosis in Europe. The Veterinary Record 21, 248.Google Scholar
Chirico, J. ( 1994). Prehibernating Musca autumnalis (Diptera: Muscidae) an overwintering host for parasitic nematodes. Veterinary Parasitology 52, 279–284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gasser, R. B. ( 1999). PCR-based technology in veterinary parasitology. Veterinary Parasitology 84, 229–258.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gasser, R. B. and Newton, S. E. ( 2000). Genomic and genetic research on bursate nematodes: significance, implications and prospects. International Journal for Parasitology 30, 509–534.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hermosilla, C., Herrmann, B. and Bauer, C. ( 2004). First case of Thelazia callipaeda infection in a dog in Germany. The Veterinary Record 154, 568–569.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kozlov, D. P. ( 1963). The life cycle of nematode Thelazia callipaeda parasitic in the eye of the man and carnivores. Doklady Akademy Nauk SSSR 142, 732–733.Google Scholar
Lia, R. P., Traversa, D., Agostini, A. and Otranto, D. ( 2004). Field efficacy of moxidectin 1 against Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida, Thelaziidae) in naturally infected dogs. The Veterinary Record 154, 143–145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Màca, J. ( 2003). Taxonomic notes on the genera previously classified in the genus Amiota Loew (Diptera: Drosophilidae, Steganinae). Acta Universitatis Carolinae Biologica 47, 247–274.Google Scholar
Otranto, D., Ferroglio, E., Lia, R., Traversa, D. and Rossi, L. ( 2003 a). Current status and epidemiological observations of Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida, Thelaziidae) in dogs, cats and foxes in Italy: a ‘coincidence’ or a parasitic disease of the Old Continent? Veterinary Parasitology 116, 315–325.Google Scholar
Otranto, D., Lia, R. P., Buono, V., Traversa, D. and Giangaspero, A. ( 2004). Biology of Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida, Thelaziidae) eyeworms in naturally infected definitive hosts, Parasitology 129, 627–633.Google Scholar
Otranto, D., Lia, R. P., Testini, G., Milillo, P., Shen, J. L. and Wang, Z. X. ( 2005). Musca domestica is not a vector of Thelazia callipaeda in experimental or natural conditions. Medical and Veterinary Entomology 19, 135–135.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Otranto, D., Tarsitano, E., Traversa, D., De Luca, F. and Giangaspero, A. ( 2003 b) Molecular epidemiological survey on the vectors of Thelazia gulosa, Thelazia rhodesii and Thelazia skrjabini (Spirurida: Thelaziidae). Parasitology 127, 365–373.Google Scholar
Otranto, D. and Traversa, D. ( 2004). Molecular characterisation of the first internal transcribed spacer (ITS 1) of ribosomal DNA of the most common species of eyeworm (Thelazioidea: Thelazia). Journal of Parasitology 90, 185–188.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Otranto, D. and Traversa, D. ( 2005). Thelazia eyeworm: an original endo- and ecto-parasitic nematode. Trends in Parasitology 1, 4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rossi, L. and Bertaglia, P. ( 1989). Presence of Thelazia callipaeda Railliet & Henry, 1910, in Piedmont, Italy. Parassitologia 31, 167–172.Google Scholar
Rossi, L. and Peruccio, C. ( 1989). Thelaziosi oculare nel cane: aspetti clinici e terapeutici. Veterinaria 2, 47–50 (In Italian, with abstract in English).Google Scholar
Sharrocks, A. D. ( 1994). The design of primers for PCR. In PCR Technology: Current Innovations ( ed. Griffin, H. G. and Griffin, A. H.), pp. 5–11. CRC Press Inc., London.
Shi, Y. E., Han, J. J., Yang, W. Y. and Wei, D. X. ( 1988). Thelazia callipaeda (Nematoda: Spirurida): transmission by flies from dogs to children in Hubei, China. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 82, 627.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, J. D., Gibson, T. J., Plewniak, F., Jeanmougin, F. and Higgins, D. G. ( 1997). The Clustal X windows interface: flexible strategies for multiple sequence alignment aided by quality analysis tools. Nucleic Acids Research 24, 4876–4882.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wang, Z. X., Wang, K. C., Shen, J. L., Chen, Q., Wang, H. Y., Zhang, L. W., Wang, Z. C. and Jiang, B. L. ( 2002 a). Capturing and identification of Amiota okadai, the intermediate host of Thelazia callipaeda. Chinese Journal of Zoology 37, 58–61.Google Scholar
Wang, Z. X., Wang, K. and Chen, Q. ( 2002 b). Experimental studies of susceptibility of Thelazia callipaeda to Amiota okadai in three provinces of China. Chinese Journal of Zoonoses 18, 61–3.Google Scholar