Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dlnhk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-02T18:12:51.442Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Radioactive studies on the feeding of larvae, nymphs, and adults of the cattle tick, Boophilus microplus (Canestrini)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

G. W. Seifert ,
P. H. Springell  and
R. J. Tatchell
G. W. Seifert
Affiliation:
Division of Animal Genetics, C.S.I.R.O., National Cattle Breeding Station, ‘Belmont’ and Cattle Research Laboratory, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia
P. H. Springell
Affiliation:
Division of Animal Genetics, C.S.I.R.O., National Cattle Breeding Station, ‘Belmont’ and Cattle Research Laboratory, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia
R. J. Tatchell
Affiliation:
Division of Entomology, C.S.I.R.O., Veterinary Parasitology Laboratory, Yeerongpilly, Queensland, Australia
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

The erythrocytes and plasma of a British and Brahman crossbred steer were labelled with 51Cr and 125I respectively. The radioactivity levels were subsequently maintained as constant as feasible by injecting the steers with calculated amounts of the appropriate labelled material on 3 consecutive days. The steers had previously been heavily infested with Boophilus microplus to ensure that all stages in the parasite's life-cycle would be present during the 4-day period, when the steers were being treated with isotopes.

Various stages of B. microplus larvae, nymphs and adults were collected and the uptake of red cells and plasma at each stage assessed by radioassay. In certain calculations, corrections were made for the uptake of blood fractions before the animals were made radioactive.

A relationship between the weight of the tick and its dietary intake was established. At all the stages of larval and nymphal feeding the plasma content of the diet was greater than that of the host blood. However, erythrocytes were detectable even in the earliest larval stages examined. Dropped fully engorged adult females contained more red cells per individual, and generally also more plasma, than engorged ticks removed from the host.

Fully engorged adult females took up as much as twice their own weight of blood components, but in none of the earlier stages did the tick concentrate its blood meal.

No obvious differences could be demonstrated statistically between the behaviour of the parasites on the two hosts. However, indications are that recently attached larvae took up more erythrocytes from the British animal.

We wish to thank Messrs A. K. Duffield, A. J. Short, B. Wilson, and Miss S. J. Shepherd, for skilful technical assistance.

Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 58 , Issue 2 , May 1968 , pp. 415 - 430
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1968

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

Anker, H. S. (1960). The biosynthesis of plasma proteins. In The Plasma Proteins, vol. 2, pp. 267–307. Ed. Putnam, F. W.. London: Academic Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arthur, D. R. & Snow, K. (1966). The significance of size in the immature stages of the Ixodoidea. Parasitology 56, 391–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Balashov, Y. (1964). Quantities of blood ingested by ixodid ticks (Acarina: Ixodidae) in the feeding stages. Zool. Zh. 43, 418–23.Google Scholar
Cohen, S., Holloway, R. C., Mathews, C. & McFarlane, A. S. (1956). Distribution and elimination of I131 and C14-labelled plasma proteins in the rabbit. Biochem. J. 62, 143–54.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dixon, F. J., Maurer, P. H. & Deichmiller, M. P. (1953). Half-lives of homologous serum albumins in several species. Proc. Soc. exp. Biol. Med. 83, 287–8.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dornhorst, A. C. (1951). The interpretation of red cell survival curves. Blood 6, 1284–92.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Francis, J. & Little, D. A. (1964). Resistance of Droughtmaster cattle to tick infestation and babesiosis. Aust. vet. J. 40, 247–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gray, S. J. & Sterling, K. (1950). The tagging of red cells and plasma proteins with radioactive chromium. J. clin. Invest. 29, 1604–13.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harris, I. M., McAllister, J. M. & Prankerd, T. A. J. (1957). The relationship of abnormal red cells to the normal spleen. Clin. Sci. 16, 223–30.Google Scholar
Hitchcock, L. S. (1955). Studies on the parasitic stages of the cattle tick, Boophilus microplus (Canestrini) (Acarina: Ixodidae). Aust. J. Zool. 3, 145–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kitaoka, S. (1961). Physiological and ecological studies on some ticks. V. Nitrogen and iron excretion and amount of blood meal ingested during the blood sucking process in the tick. Natn. Inst. Anim. Hlth Q., Tokyo 1, 96–104.Google Scholar
Little, D. A. (1963). The effect of cattle tick infestation on the growth rate of cattle. Aust. vet. J. 39, 6–10.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McFarlane, A. S. (1952). Use of isotopes in the study of plasma protein metabolism. Br. med. Bull. 8, 213–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McFarlane, A. S. (1958). Efficient trace-labelling of proteins with Iodine. Nature, Lond. 182, 53.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Norman, M. J. T. (1960). Grazing and feeding trials with beef cattle at Katherine, N.T. Tech. Pap. Div. Ld Res. Reg. Surv. C.S.I.R.O., Aust. No 12, 1–15.Google Scholar
Riek, R. F. (1957). Studies on the reactions of animals to infestation with ticks. I. Tick anaemia. Aust. J. agric. Res. 8, 209–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Riek, R. F. (1962). Studies on the reactions of animals to infestation with ticks. VI. Resistance of cattle to infestation with the tick Boophilus microplus (Canestrini). Aust. J. agric. Res. 13, 532–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schnappauf, H. P., Di Giacomo, E. & Cronkite, E. P. (1965). Survival of transfused homologous erythrocytes in cattle. Am. J. vet. Res. 26, 1212–14.Google ScholarPubMed
Springell, P. H. (1968). Red cell volume and blood volume in beef cattle. Aust. J. agric. Res. 19, 145–60.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tatchell, R. J. (1967). Salivary secretion in the cattle tick as a means of water elimination. Nature, Lond. 213, 940–1.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Todd, J. R. & Ross, J. G. (1966). Observations on the use of radioactive 51Cr-labelled red cells to study anaemia in Fasciola hepatica infections in cattle. Clinica chim. Acta 14, 27–30.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Veall, N. & Vetter, H. (1958). Radioisotope Techniques in Clinical Research and Diagnosis, p. 249. London: Butterworths.Google Scholar
Wilkinson, P. R. (1955). Observations on infestations of undipped cattle of British breeds with cattle tick, Boophilus microplus (Canestrini). Aust. J. agric. Res. 6, 655–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar