Parasites are organisms that live on or within a host, deriving nutrients at the host's expense. In horses, parasitic infections can affect various systems, including the gastrointestinal tract, skin, and respiratory system. Common equine parasites include strongyles, ascarids, tapeworms, and bots. These parasites can lead to a range of health issues, from mild discomfort to severe disease, depending on the type and burden of the infestation. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the biology, life cycle, and impact of parasites on equine health, as well as strategies for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of parasitic infections in horses.
Couso-Pérez S, de Limia FB, Ares-Mazás E, Gómez-Couso H.Studies on the prevalence and molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium spp. affecting feral horses are scarce. The highland areas of the northern Iberian Peninsula are home to a large population of wild ponies which generally roam free in the ancient natural range and are subjected to a traditional exploitation regime. In the present study, a total of 79 non-diarrhoeal faecal samples from the wild ponies were collected from the ground immediately after defecation. Cryptosporidium was detected in 10 of the samples (12.6%) by a direct immunofluorescence antibody test and DNA amplification a...
Slusarewicz M, Slusarewicz P, Nielsen MK.Fecal egg counts are the primary diagnostic tools of equine parasitology and use of the McMaster test and its variants in clinical practice is widely recommended. Manual counting is, however, prone to various sources of human error. For example, in real-world situations analysts can be under significant pressure to process high numbers of samples in a limited time. This practice could affect test result quality, but yet no studies have determined whether this is the case. This study's purpose was to assess the effect of shortened counting duration (from either restricting counting time or coun...
Asif M, Parveen A, Ashraf S, Hussain M, Aktas M, Ozubek S, Shaikh RS, Iqbal F.The present study was designed to check the molecular detection of Anaplasma marginale and Theileria annulata in blood samples of horses and donkeys collected from Dera Ghazi Khan District in Punjab and to document their phylogenetic origin and their association with studied epidemiological factors (sex and age) and complete blood count parameters, if any. Results: A total of 195 blood samples were collected from apparently healthy horses (N = 141) and donkeys (N = 54). A. marginale DNA was detected by PCR in 4.9% (7/141) horse and in 9.2% (5/54) of donkey blood samples. Prevalence of ...
Kauter A, Epping L, Semmler T, Antao EM, Kannapin D, Stoeckle SD, Gehlen H, Lübke-Becker A, Günther S, Wieler LH, Walther B.Understanding the complex interactions of microbial communities including bacteria, archaea, parasites, viruses and fungi of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) associated with states of either health or disease is still an expanding research field in both, human and veterinary medicine. GIT disorders and their consequences are among the most important diseases of domesticated Equidae, but current gaps of knowledge hinder adequate progress with respect to disease prevention and microbiome-based interventions. Current literature on enteral microbiomes mirrors a vast data and knowledge imbalance, w...
Souza EAR, Araujo AC, Pires LCSR, Freschi CR, Azevedo SS, Machado RZ, Horta MC.Equine piroplasmosis, an economically important disease in horses, has so far not been reported in Pernambuco state, Brazil. This study aimed to evaluate the seroprevalence of anti-Babesia caballi and anti-Theileria equi antibodies based on the detection of these agents in equine blood and in ticks on horses in the municipality of Petrolina, Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil. Blood samples were drawn from 393 horses and sera were examined by ELISA. The presence of tick infestations was evaluated, and 101 ticks were subjected to DNA amplification for the detection of Babesia spp. by polymerase ch...
Forteau L, Dumont B, Sallé G, Bigot G, Fleurance G.Strongyle infection is an important issue in horse breeding. It impairs horse health and performance, with young horses being the most sensitive. Strongyle control has long relied on the systematic use of chemical treatments. However, expanding anthelmintic resistance among strongyles calls for alternative options. Mixed grazing is assumed to reduce strongyle load on the pasture as the result of a dilution effect. This has been shown in small ruminants grazing with cattle, but the putative benefits of co-grazing between horses and cattle have not yet been evaluated. Here, we conducted field su...
Menezes RC, Campos MP, Popielarczyk M, Kiupel M.We report a new case of cutaneous leishmaniosis caused by Leishmania (Mundinia) martiniquensis in a horse in Florida, USA. A 10-year-old neutered male Quarter horse was presented with multifocal to coalescing, raised, ulcerated and oozing, non-healing wounds on both pinnae of several weeks' duration. After a few months, the lesions regressed spontaneously. Biopsies of the lesions were performed with microscopical findings of epidermal hyperplasia with multifocal ulceration and focally extensive, dermal pyogranulomatous inflammation with numerous intact and degenerate neutrophils being surround...
Budiono NG, Satrija F, Ridwan Y, Handharyani E, Murtini S.Schistosomiasis is endemic in Indonesia and is found in three remote areas in Central Sulawesi Province. Non-human mammals serve as reservoir hosts, meaning the disease is zoonotic. The previous schistosomiasis studies in animals from the Lindu Subdistrict did not determine which domestic animal species can serve as the primary source of transmission. No animals have been treated in Indonesia to control the disease; therefore, the parasite's life cycle is not blocked entirely. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and identify the risk factors associated with, infection in animals, and...
Li X, Ni HB, Ren WX, Jiang J, Gong QL, Zhang XX.Toxoplasmosis, one of the most common zoonoses worldwide, is caused by Toxoplasma gondii. T. gondii can infect almost all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Horses are an intermediate host of T. gondii, representing a potential risk for humans. To determine the T. gondii seroprevalence in horses worldwide, a global meta-analysis was conducted. A total of 35 publications were obtained by searching the PubMed, ScienceDirect, Chinese Web of knowledge (CNKI) and Wanfang databases. A total of 12,354 horses were assessed, of which 1580 were positive for T. gondii. The pooled overall seroprevale...
Gonzales-Viera O, Fritz H, Mete A.A 7-month-old female mixed breed foal with a 2-day history of recumbency and inability to open its mouth convulsed acutely and died and was submitted for necropsy examination. The foal was thin and large patches of haemorrhage were present throughout the peritoneal wall, the diaphragmatic surfaces and the retroperitoneum. Numerous nematode larvae were visible on the serosal surfaces and penetrated and embedded into the subserosa associated with the haemorrhages. The dorsal portion of the abdominal diaphragm had a partial tear and large numbers of nematodes were within the muscle fibres. Histol...
Yao C.The kinetoplastid protozoan Leishmania spp. cause leishmaniasis, which clinically exhibit mainly as a cutaneous, mucocutanous or visceral form depending upon the parasite species in humans. The disease is widespread geographically, leading to 20 000 annual deaths. Here, leishmaniases in both humans and animals, reservoirs and sand fly vectors on the Caribbean islands are reviewed. Autochthonous human infections by Leishmania spp. were found in the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe and Martinique as well as Trinidad and Tobago; canine infections were found in St. Kitts and Grenada; and equine infe...
Limeira CH, Alves CJ, Azevedo SS, Santos CSAB, Melo MA, Soares RR, Barnabé NNDC, Rodrigues GQ.Leishmaniases are a group of diseases of zoonotic importance caused by over 20 species of protozoa of the genus Leishmania, in which domestic dogs are considered to be the main reservoir for the disease. However, the involvement of other vertebrates as reservoirs for these parasites has also been investigated. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to carry out a systematic review with meta-analysis on occurrences of leishmaniasis in equids. The case reports described animals with cutaneous symptoms of leishmaniasis (papules, nodules, ulcers or crusts) that regressed spontaneously, ...
Mhadhbi M, Sassi A.Infection of equids by Leishmania (L.) parasites was previously described in both the Old and New World, particularly in Central and South America. Equine cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is caused by the Leishmania species, L. Viannia (V.) braziliensis and L. infantum, previously identified in humans and other parasite hosts living in the same geographic endemic areas. Sporadic autochthonous clinical cases, with no travel history, were documented in several countries including Germany, Portugal, Spain, Texas and Brazil; L. infantum and L. (Mundinia) martiniquensis were the infectious species....
Tuorinsky EV, Machtinger ET.House flies can have negative consequences on the welfare of horses and other equids. Fly repellents in the form of on-animal sprays, wipes, or spot-ons are the most commonly used fly control method for horses. Many products are available, but repellent efficacy and duration of effectiveness may influence repellent choice by horse owners. A better understanding of the efficacy of common fly repellent products will help guide repellent selection to reduce fly pressure on horses. To evaluate commercially available repellents, house fly behavioral inhibition after application of three products ma...
Imani-Baran A, Abdollahi J, Akbari H, Jafarirad S, Moharramnejad S.Trachyspermum ammi has been used traditionally as a popular ethnobotanical plant in human and animal parasitic infestations. Few scientific studies have been conducted on in vitro anthelmintic activity of T. ammi against various helminths and there is no study on its in vivo/in vitro anthelmintic properties against equine helminths. Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate in vivo anthelmintic activity of crude powder (CP) and crude aqueous extract (CAE) of T. ammi seeds against gastrointestinal nematodes in the donkey. Methods: Thirty donkeys, naturally and severely infected with Stro...
Norris JK, Slusarewicz P, Nielsen MK.The efficacy of anthelmintic treatments against populations of endoparasites infecting livestock throughout the world is decreasing. To mitigate this, the use of fecal egg counts is recommended to determine both the necessity, and to ensure the appropriate choice, of anthelmintic treatment. Traditionally, and in order to facilitate easier identification and/or enumeration, samples are analysed after separating eggs from other fecal particulates by exposing them to a solution with a density higher than that of the eggs, but lower than the remaining fecal contents. While many parasite egg flotat...
Tzelos T, Morgan ER, Easton S, Hodgkinson JE, Matthews JB.Interval treatment control programmes used widely in equine helminth control have favoured the development of anthelmintic resistance worldwide. Best practice guidelines have been designed to address resistance and include the requirement for improved pasture hygiene to break helminth transmission cycles, along with anthelmintic application informed by the results of diagnostic tests to reduce selection pressure for resistance. Using an online questionnaire, this study examined uptake of measures recommended in these guidelines by UK horse owners. The survey comprised 58 questions spanning gra...
Tyrrell JD, Qurollo BA, Tornquist SJ, Schlaich KG, Kelsey J, Chandrashekar R, Breitschwerdt EB.Certain vector-borne organisms serve as etiological agents of equine disease. After previously identifying a new Ehrlichia species in horses from Mérida, we aimed to determine the infection frequency and screen for a wide range of vector-borne organisms from 93 tick-exposed, Ehrlichia seropositive horses in this region. PCR assays were performed to identify infection by organisms within the following genera: Anaplasma, Babesia, Bartonella, Ehrlichia, Leishmania, Mycoplasma, Neorickettsia, Rickettsia and Theileria. Overall, 90/93 horses (96.8%) were infected with one or more vector-borne organ...
Farah Haziqah MT, Nur Hikmah AM, Mat Hasan H, Hamdan A, Nik Him NAII.An investigation was undertaken for screening and isolating nematophagous-fungi from the faecal samples of various grazing animals and soils in Malaysia. Total of 111 faeces and 50 soil samples were collected and the samples were cultured on 2% water agar plates. The growth of nematophagous-fungi was stimulated by sprinkling-baiting technique. The conidia of suspected nematophagous-fungi were inoculated on 2% water agar plates. All isolated were maintained on 2% cornmeal agar plates. Verticillium spp., Fusarium spp. and Arthrobotrys spp. were identified from the faecal and soil samples. 62.5% ...
Selmi R, Dhibi M, Ben Said M, Ben Yahia H, Abdelaali H, Ameur H, Baccouche S, Gritli A, Mhadhbi M.Livestock constitute habitual hosts and carriers for several infectious pathogens which may represent a serious public health concern affecting the readiness of military forces and lead to wide economic losses. The present report aimed to investigate the prevalence of some haemopathogens infecting military livestock, particularly, dromedaries, sheep and horses using Giemsa-stained blood smears. A total of 300 animals (100 from each species) were selected, clinically examined and sampled. Trypanosoma spp. (22.0%), Anaplasma spp. (17.0%) and Babesia spp. (1.0%) were identified in camels' blood. ...
Leathwick DM, Sauermann CW, Nielsen MK.Selective anthelmintic therapy has been recommended as a sustainable strategy for cyathostomin control in horse populations for several decades. The traditional approach has been to determine strongyle fecal egg counts (FEC) for all horses, with treatment only recommended for those exceeding a predetermined threshold. The aims are to achieve a reduction of overall egg shedding, while leaving a proportion of the herd untreated, which lowers anthelmintic treatment intensity and reduces selection pressure for development of anthelmintic resistance. This study made use of the cyathostomin model to...
Lawson AL, Pittaway CE, Sparrow RM, Balkwill EC, Coles GC, Tilley A, Wilson AD.Anoplocephala perfoliata is the commonest equine tapeworm, the adult parasites are attached in groups close to the ileocaecal valve causing marked inflammatory pathology. This work aimed to characterize the nature of the in vivo mucosal immune response to A perfoliata, and to investigate the role of A perfoliata excretory-secretory components in modulating in vitro immune responses. Real-time PCR detected elevation of IL13 and TGFβ transcription in early-stage A perfoliata infection. In late-stage infection, IL-13, IL4 and Ifn transcripts were reduced while the regulatory cytokines, TGFβ...
Zynda HM, Scare JA, Steuer AE, Anderson HP, Nielsen MK.Cyathostomins are pervasive equine parasites in horses across the world, and larval stages are known to cause the deadly disease larval cyathostominosis. The mucosal digestion technique is widely used for enumeration of encysted larval stages. Previous studies have investigated the spatial variation of encysted larvae, however current protocols lack a description of a standardized area from which to take the tissue sample. This study sought to evaluate spatial variation in encysted cyathostomin larval counts among the large intestinal organs and their subsections. Following humane euthanasia, ...
Cain JL, Foulk D, Jedrzejewski E, Stofanak H, Nielsen MK.Anthelmintic resistance in equine cyathostomin parasites is widespread. A surveillance-based parasite control program using fecal egg counts (FECs) and fecal egg count reduction tests (FECRTs) to decrease anthelmintic use and monitor treatment efficacy is recommended. The purpose of this study was to examine shifts in equine parasite control program management practices via a short course presented by the Penn State Extension, and to highlight how data collected from these programs is useful for monitoring anthelmintic efficacy on a large scale. Horse owners were enrolled after participating i...
Myagmarsuren P, Sivakumar T, Enkhtaivan B, Davaasuren B, Zoljargal M, Narantsatsral S, Davkharbayar B, Mungun-Ochir B, Battur B, Inoue N, Igarashi I....Equine piroplasmosis caused by and is an economically important disease with a worldwide distribution. The objective of the present study was to investigate the seroepidemiology of and in horses reared in various Mongolian provinces. Serum samples prepared from blood collected from horses in 19 Mongolian provinces were screened for antibodies specific to and using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays based on recombinant forms of merozoite antigen-2 and the 48-kDa merozoite rhoptry protein, respectively. Of 1,282 horses analyzed, 423 (33%) and 182 (14.2%) were sero-positive for and , re...
Li XY, Pape T, Zhang D.Species of Gasterophilus Leach are obligate parasites in domestic and wild equids and responsible for cosmopolitan gasterophilosis. Although with only eight species known so far, they have received considerable attention because of their significant veterinary and economic importance. Surprisingly, we found that G. flavipes (Olivier) is a valid species based on morphological characters from male, female and the egg, after spending half a century as a synonym of G. haemorrhoidalis (Linnaeus). In the present study, G. flavipes, G. haemorrhoidalis and G. inermis (Brauer), which are the three clos...
Azmi K, Al-Jawabreh A, Abdeen Z.Theileria and Babesia are intracellular protozoan parasites infecting a wide range of animals. In Palestine, there is limited information on the prevalence of Theileria and Babesia spp. in livestock. We used PCR of the 18S ribosomal RNA gene followed by DNA sequencing to detect and identify parasite DNA in blood samples from sheep (n = 49), goats (n = 48), horses (n = 40), camels (n = 34), donkeys (n = 28) and mules (n = 2) from four districts of Palestine. DNA of T. ovis and T. equi was detected in 19 and 2 ovine blood samples, respectively. None of the camels, donkeys...
Hautala K, Näreaho A, Kauppinen O, Nielsen MK, Sukura A, Rajala-Schultz PJ.Gastrointestinal parasites, Parascaris sp. and strongyles, are common in young horses worldwide and control of these parasites is challenged by increasing anthelmintic resistance. Our aim was to identify risk factors for these infections as well as to assess the efficacy of fenbendazole (dose 7.5 mg/kg) and pyrantel embonate (dose 19 mg/kg) against Parascaris sp. We also evaluated association between owner observed symptoms and patent infections with these parasites. Fecal samples were collected from 367 young horses in Finland and a questionnaire study was conducted. Fecal egg counts were...
Beata Byczkowska , Bogumiła Pilarczyk , Agnieszka Tomza-Marciniak .The emergence of drug resistance among parasites is a side effect of the common use of chemotherapeutic agents in horses. Combating parasites typically involves routine deworming treatments twice a year (before and after the grazing season). However, in grazing farming this treatment may be insufficient. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of programs to combat the invasion of strongyles (Strongylidae) in horses in the selected stables of Western Pomerania. Coprological examination was conducted in 85 horses from three stables located in Western Pomerania. Horses from all th...
Bianchi MV, Mello LS, Wentz MF, Panziera W, Soares JF, Sonne L, Driemeier D, Pavarini SP.Diseases related to the alimentary system are the main cause of death in horses. This retrospective study aimed to describe the pathological findings of fatal parasite-induced enteritis and typhlocolitis caused by cyathostominae, Eimeria leuckarti, Balantidium coli, and Strongyloides westeri in horses. The records of parasite-induced intestinal lesions in horses necropsied in Southern Brazil between 2005 and 2017 were reviewed. Ten horses had fatal parasitic enteritis and/or typhlocolitis, and the main causes were: cyathostominae typhlocolitis (6/10), E. leuckarti enteritis (1/10), S. westeri ...
Zaugg JL, Lane VM.We evaluated the efficacy of buparvaquone in eliminating infection with Babesia equi of European origin in carrier horses and in splenectomized horses with experimentally induced acute infection. When administered at the rate of 5 mg/kg of body weight, IV, 4 times at 48-hour intervals, buparvaquone prompted rapid abatement of parasitemia. However, secondary and tertiary recrudescent parasitemias invariably returned with establishment of the carrier state. Buparvaquone, at the dosage evaluated, had transitory therapeutic efficacy against acute B equi infection in splenectomized horses, but was ...
Boisseau M, Dhorne-Pollet S, Bars-Cortina D, Courtot É, Serreau D, Annonay G, Lluch J, Gesbert A, Reigner F, Sallé G, Mach N.The nature and strength of interactions entertained among helminths and their host gut microbiota remain largely unexplored. Using 40 naturally infected Welsh ponies, we tracked the gut microbiota-cyathostomin temporal dynamics and stability before and following anthelmintic treatment and the associated host blood transcriptomic response. High shedders harbored 14 species of cyathostomins, dominated by . They exhibited a highly diverse and temporal dynamic gut microbiota, with butyrate-producing Clostridia likely driving the ecosystem steadiness and host tolerance toward cyathostomins infectio...
Pusterla N, Johnson EM, Chae JS, Madigan JE.Neorickettsia (formerly Ehrlichia) risticii, the agent of Potomac horse fever (PHF), has been recently detected in trematode stages found in the secretions of freshwater snails and in aquatic insects. Insectivores, such as bats and birds, may serve as the definitive host of the trematode vector. To determine the definitive helminth vector, five bats (Myotis yumanensis) and three swallows (Hirundo rustica, Tachycineta bicolor) were collected from a PHF endemic location in northern California. Bats and swallows were dissected and their major organs examined for trematodes and for N. risticii DNA...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC, Collins SS.Fecal samples (n=1,584) for a parasite study were collected from Thoroughbred foals (n=349), 28 to 330 days old, on seven farms in central Kentucky during 49 monthly trips from May to October, November, or December 2004. The main purpose was to determine possible drug resistance of ascarids, also of strongyles, to ivermectin (IVM) and other commercially available compounds [fenbendazole, moxidectin (MOX), oxibendazole (OBZ), and pyrantel pamoate]. In addition, interest was on prevalence of foal parasites. Qualitative data were obtained by recording presence or absence of ascarid and strongyle ...
Okulewicz A, Lonc E, Borgsteede FH.The biology of the ascarid nematodes has been discussed in the context of their important economic role in farm animals, pet animals and zoo animals with special attention to carnivores and primates. In farm animals, infection with the most common roundworm of horses (Parascaris equorum) and swine (Ascaris suum) depend on many factors such as environmental conditions (larval development in the egg and egg survival), age of the host, breed, husbandry system, hygiene and treatment schedule. The monoxenic ascarids Toxocara canis and T. cati are the most important nematodes in carnivorous animals ...
Tomczuk K, Kostro K, Szczepaniak KO, Grzybek M, Studzińska M, Demkowska-Kutrzepa M, Roczeń-Karczmarz M.The autopsy of 487 slaughter horses revealed the presence of Anoplocephala perfoliata in 36 animals. The invasions varied in the intensity (3 to 2,069 tapeworms) and in the level of tapeworms' proglottid maturity. Twenty nine horses were found to contain tapeworms with gravid proglottid. Fecal samples collected from the rectum were tested using following techniques: flotation with solution-saturated NaCl, decantation, McMaster's, and modified sedimentation-flotation methods (50 g feces samples, flotation solution-saturated NaCl and sucrose, specific gravity 1.25 g/ml). The number of A. perfoli...
Speer CA, Dubey JP.The ultrastructure of Sarcocystis neurona schizonts and merozoites was studied in specimens derived from cell culture and from the brains of infected mice. Schizonts and merozoites were located in the host cell cytoplasm without a parasitophorous vacuole at any stage of development. Merozoites divided by endopolygeny. Fully formed merozoites had a pellicle, numerous polysomes and ribosomes, smooth and rough endoplasmic reticulum, 22 subpellicular microtubules, 9-16 dense granules, 25-75 micronemes, a plastid, a Golgi complex, 1-3 mitochondria, a conoid, 2 apical rings, 2 polar rings, 0-6 lipid...
Jenkins E, Backwell AL, Bellaw J, Colpitts J, Liboiron A, McRuer D, Medill S, Parker S, Shury T, Smith M, Tschritter C, Wagner B, Poissant J....Sable Island, Nova Scotia, Canada hosts one of few natural populations of feral horses (Equus caballus) never exposed to anthelmintics. Coproculture revealed cyathostomes, Strongylus equinus, S. edentatus, and S. vulgaris, with S. equinus (unusually) dominating in adult horses and cyathostomes dominating in young horses (<3 years of age). We examined 35 horses found dead in the springs of 2017 and 2018, as well as fecal samples from live horses in spring (n = 45) and summer 2018 (n = 236) using McMaster fecal flotation and Baermann larval sedimentation on fresh samples, and modified Wiscon...
Leathwick DM, Sauermann CW, Nielsen MK.Selective anthelmintic therapy has been recommended as a sustainable strategy for cyathostomin control in horse populations for several decades. The traditional approach has been to determine strongyle fecal egg counts (FEC) for all horses, with treatment only recommended for those exceeding a predetermined threshold. The aims are to achieve a reduction of overall egg shedding, while leaving a proportion of the herd untreated, which lowers anthelmintic treatment intensity and reduces selection pressure for development of anthelmintic resistance. This study made use of the cyathostomin model to...
Karatepe B, Karatepe M, Cakmak A, Karaer Z, Ergün G.The prevalence of equine piroplasmosis caused by Theileria equi and Babesia caballi in Nigde, in central Anatolia, Turkey has remained unknown. Serum samples were obtained from a total of 125 horses and were tested for antibodies to T. equi and B. caballi using the Indirect Fluorescence Antibody Test (IFAT). Twenty-three (18.4%) horses were seropositive for equine piroplasmosis. Anti-T. equi was observed in 16 horses (12.8%) while anti-B. caballi was detected in 12 horses (9.6%). In addition, 5 serum samples were positive for both parasites. The prevalence rates of antibodies to T. equi and B....
Ehizibolo DO, Kamani J, Ehizibolo PO, Egwu KO, Dogo GI, Salami-Shinaba JO.This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and significance of parasites of horses in northern Nigeria. Blood and faecal samples were randomly collected from 243 horses from different stables in some states of northern Nigeria for laboratory analyses. Fifty-seven horses (23.5%) were found infected with parasites. The hemoparasites detected, 21 (8.6%), include Theileria equi, Babesia caballi, Trypanosoma vivax and Trypanosoma evansi. The endoparasites encountered, 29 (11.9%) were Strongylus spp., Strongyloides spp., Oxyuris equi, Parascaris equorum, Paragonimus spp. and Dicrocoelium s...
Stiller D, Coan ME.This brief review focuses first on several epidemiologically relevant aspects of anaplasmosis, including: (1) the role of male ticks as intrastadial, biological vectors of Anaplasma through interhost transfer; (2) the application of molecular diagnostic assays in assessing tick vector competence and evaluating the role of chronically infected carrier cattle as sources of Anaplasma marginale infection in vector ticks; (3) opportunities provided by a recently developed in vitro tick feeding system in quantitating studies of tick-hemoparasite-host interactions. Lastly, current knowledge of the st...
Martin F, Svansson V, Eydal M, Oddsdóttir C, Ernback M, Persson I, Tydén E.Horses in Iceland have been isolated for more than 1,000 yr but still harbor a similar range of gastrointestinal parasites as do horses across the world. The long isolation of the horses and their parasites presumably means that no resistance genes have been introduced into the Parascaris spp. population. It is therefore of particular interest to investigate the efficacy of ivermectin on Parascaris spp. infecting Icelandic foals. Potential treatment failure of ivermectin in Iceland will add substantial new information on how resistance can arise independently. This study aimed to determine the...
Kuttler KL, Gipson CA, Goff WL, Johnson LW.Nine 4-year-old Arabian geldings were experimentally infected with Babesia equi of European origin. All horses developed detectable parasitemia an average of 30 days after they were inoculated, which was accompanied by a decrease in PCV. The infections were generally mild with no animal deaths. All horses became serologically positive by the indirect fluorescent antibody test within an average of 23 days after they were inoculated and by the complement-fixation test 30 days after they were inoculated.
Haridy FM, Morsy TA, Gawish NI, Antonios TN, Abdel Gawad AG.No doubt, fascioliasis tops all the zoonotic helminthes worldwide. In Egypt, human fascioliasis is increasing. The incidence and prevalence of fascioliasis in the Egyptian farm animals are well documented. However, none in Egypt has focused on the potential role of other domestic farm animals. A preliminary coprologic examination of donkeys and horses was done in eight centers of Gharbia governorate. The overall rate of infection in donkeys was 3.03%, in horses was 1.5%, and in mules 0.0%. Horses 2/74 (2.70%) and 1/26 (3.86%) were infected in Zefta and El Mahala El Kobra centers respectively. ...
Montes Cortés MG, Fernández-García JL, Habela Martínez-Estéllez MÁ.Two haemoparasites, Theileria equi and Babesia caballi, cause equine piroplasmosis (EP), one of the most prevalent tick-borne diseases in horses. The main aim of the present study was to develop and evaluate a multinested PCR (mn-PCR) for simultaneous detection of the equine piroplasmids T. equi and B. caballi, by amplification of five genetic markers (18S rRNA, β-tubulin, cytB, EMA-1 and RAP-1). This novel assay detected a high prevalence of equine piroplasmids in 235 horse blood samples collected in Castilla-León and Extremadura, Spain. The overall prevalence of infection with equine pirop...
Braga FR, Araújo JV, Silva AR, Carvalho RO, Araujo JM, Ferreira SR, Carvalho GR.The predatory capacity of the nematophagous fungus Pochonia chlamydosporia (isolate VC4) embedded in sodium alginate pellets after passage through the gastrointestinal tract of horses was assessed in vitro against Oxyuris equi eggs. Twelve previously dewormed crossbred mares, average weight of 362.5kg (+/-21) were used in the experiment. Each animal of the treated group received an oral dose (100g) of sodium alginate pellets containing P. chlamydosporia mycelial mass. The control group received pellets without fungus. Faecal samples from fungus-treated and control groups were collected at inte...
Proudman CJ, Trees AJ.Until recently, the equine tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata was difficult to diagnose and considered to be of questionable pathogenicity. Here, Chris Proudman and Sandy Trees describe recent advances in the immunodiagnosis of this parasite that have facilitated epidemiological studies. These studies suggest that A. perfoliata may be an important cause of intestinal disease in the horse and demonstrate a dose-response relationship between infection intensity and risk of disease. If tapeworm infection is a risk factor for ileocaecal colic, the identification and treatment of infected individual...
Gennari SM, Esmerini Pde O, Lopes MG, Soares HS, Vitaliano SN, Cabral AD, Pena HF, Horta MC, Cavalcante PH, Fortes KP, Villalobos EM.The occurrence of antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii was determined in donkeys, mules, and horses from different regions of Brazil. Serum samples from 304 donkeys (67.11%), 118 horses (26.05%), and 31 mules (6.84%) were analyzed by means of the indirect fluorescent antibody test (cutoff=64). Antibodies against T. gondii were detected in 129 equids (28.47%) (82 donkeys, 32 horses, and 15 mules). Tissue samples from 19 seropositive and 50 seronegative animals were obtained in order to isolate the parasite by means of mouse bioassay, and T. gondii was isolated from a donkey. Through genotypic c...
Elsawy BSM, Nassar AM, Alzan HF, Bhoora RV, Ozubek S, Mahmoud MS, Kandil OM, Mahdy OA.Equine Piroplasmosis (EP) is an infectious disease caused by the hemoprotozoan parasites , , and the recently identified species . Hereby, we used a multiplex PCR (mPCR) targeting the 18S rRNA gene of and for the simultaneous detection of EP in Egyptian equids and examined the presence of infections in Egypt. Blood samples from 155 equids (79 horses and 76 donkeys) collected from different governorates of Egypt were examined by mPCR and PCR targeting . The mPCR method revealed a prevalence of of 20.3% in horses and of 13.1% in donkeys and a prevalence of . of 1.2% in horses. . was not de...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC, Collins SS, Ionita M, Kuzmina TA, Rossano M.Efficacy of ivermectin (IVM) and moxidectin (MOX) against small strongyles was evaluated in horses (n=363) in field tests on 14 farms in Central Kentucky between 2007 and 2009. Most of the horses were yearlings but a few were weanlings and mares. The number of horses treated with IVM was 255 and those treated with MOX was 108. Horses on six farms were allotted into two groups. One group was treated with each of the two drugs, whereas horses on the other eight farms were treated with only one of the two drugs--IVM on six farms and MOX on two farms. Strongyle eggs per gram of feces (EPGs) compar...
Murrell KD, Djordjevic M, Cuperlovic K, Sofronic Lj, Savic M, Djordjevic M, Damjanovic S.A discovery in 2002 of a Trichinella spiralis-infected horse in Serbia offered an opportunity to conduct needed epidemiological studies on how horses, considered herbivores, acquire a meat-borne parasite. This enigma has persisted since the first human outbreaks from infected horse meat occurred in then 1970s. The trace back of the infected horse to a farm owner was carried out. Interviews and investigations on the farm led to the conclusion that the owner had fed the horse food waste in order to condition the horse prior to sale. Further investigations were then carried out to determine the f...
Braverman Y.Six hundred and twenty culicoides of five species were collected from a bait horse at Kannot, Israel, between April and September 1986. Seventy-two per cent of the midges were collected from the belly and 27 per cent from the dorsal aspect of the body, ie, the sweet itch summer seasonal recurrent dermatitis (SSRD) zone. Midges were active mainly from half an hour prior to half an hour after sunset. Only Culicoides puncticollis, C imicola and C schultzei group were collected in considerable numbers. While C imicola was present continuously throughout the season, the appearance of the two other ...
Pusterla N, Leutenegger CM, Sigrist B, Chae JS, Lutz H, Madigan JE.A real-time quantitative PCR using the TaqMan fluorogenic detection system (TaqMan PCR) was established for identification of Ehrlichia risticii, the agent of Potomac horse fever (PHF). The TaqMan PCR identified an 85 base pair section of the 16S rRNA gene by use of a specific fluorogenic probe and two primers. This technique was specific for eight tested E. risticii strains. The TaqMan system identified 10 copies of a cloned section of the 16S rRNA gene of E. risticii. The sensitivity and specificity of the TaqMan PCR were similar to those of conventional nested PCR. The TaqMan PCR was evalua...
Rames DS, Miller DK, Barthel R, Craig TM, Dziezyc J, Helman RG, Mealey R.Ocular contents from a horse with a 4-week history of severe unilateral uveitis were submitted for histopathologic examination. A severe unilateral granulomatous chorioretinitis with intralesional Halicephalobus deletrix was diagnosed. The horse developed progressive neurologic signs several days following the surgery to remove ocular contents and implant a prosthesis and was subsequently euthanatized. A severe multifocal granulomatous encephalitis with intralesional H. deletrix, localized primarily to the optic chiasm, thalamus, and brain stem, was diagnosed from tissues acquired at necropsy....
The Journal of parasitologyApril 25, 2001
Volume 87, Issue 2 345-353 doi: 10.1645/0022-3395(2001)087[0345:COTOIO]2.0.CO;2
Dubey JP, Liddell S, Mattson D, Speert CA, Howe DK, Jenkins MC.Neospora hughesi was isolated in cell cultures inoculated with homogenate of spinal cord from a horse in Oregon. Tachyzoites of this Oregon isolate of N. hughesi were maintained continuously by cell culture passage and tachyzoites were infective to immunosuppressed mice. Gamma interferon gene knockout (KO) mice injected with tachyzoites developed fatal myocarditis and numerous tachyzoites were seen in lesions. Gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) inoculated with tachyzoites developed antibodies (> or = 1:500) as indicated by the Neospora caninum agglutination test but did not develop clinical si...
Nielsen MK, Branan MA, Wiedenheft AM, Digianantonio R, Scare JA, Bellaw JL, Garber LP, Kopral CA, Phillippi-Taylor AM, Traub-Dargatz JL.Equine strongyle parasites are considered ubiquitous in grazing equids across the world, and cyathostomin parasites are known pathogens causing well-described disease complexes in horses. Decades of intensive anthelmintic treatments have led to anthelmintic resistance in cyathostomins, and current recommendations are to lower treatment intensity and base control strategies on fecal egg count surveillance. Little is known about risk factors associated with strongyle parasite egg shedding patterns in the United States equine population, as the most recent national survey was conducted 20 years a...
Sevá ADP, Pena HFJ, Nava A, Sousa AO, Holsback L, Soares RM.Morro do Diabo State Park (MDSP) is a significant remnant of the Atlantic Rain Forest in Brazil and is surrounded by rural properties. In that area, wild and domestic animals and humans are in close contact, which facilitates the two-way flow of infectious diseases among them. We assessed endoparasites in domestic livestock from all rural properties surrounding MDSP. There were sampled 197 cattle, 37 horses, 11 sheep, 25 swine, 21 dogs, one cat and 62 groups of chickens from 10 large private properties and 75 rural settlements. Eimeria spp. was present in almost all hosts, excepted in horses, ...
