Report in Europe of nasal myiasis by Rhinoestrus spp. in horses and donkeys: seasonal patterns and taxonomical considerations.
Abstract: Two species of Rhinoestrus (i.e. Rhinoestrus purpureus (Brauer) and Rhinoestrus usbekistanicus Gan) cause nasal myiasis in horses, donkeys and zebras. In the past 15 years myiasis caused by R. purpureus has been reported in Egypt and by R. usbekistanicus in Senegal and Niger, both in horses and in donkeys. With the aim to investigate the presence of this myiasis in autochthonous horses and donkeys from southern Italy and to study the seasonal trend of larval infection, 212 native horses were necropsied in two slaughterhouses in the Apulia region (site A) from January to November 2003, and 120 native horses and two donkeys in one slaughterhouse in Sicily (site B) from January to October 2003. Thirteen of 212 and 5 of 120 horses examined from sites A and B, respectively, were infected by nasal bot fly larvae. Both donkeys examined were positive. Two hundred and thirteen larvae, representing all stages, were collected from the throat region, the turbinates and beyond the lamina cribrosa of the ethmoid bone, in the cerebral cavity. Third larval stages were retrieved from April to September with the highest mean burden in site A in May and in July in site B. The simultaneous presence all three larval stages at site B suggests the existence of two or more overlapping generations. Larvae were identified on the basis of peritreme structures and arrangement of the spines on the dorsal surface of the third segment. Some L3 collected from sites A and B presented morphological characteristics of both R. usbekistanicus and R. purpureus. The presence of mixed features on the L3 of Rhinoestrus collected from the same animals may be explained by the existence of a single species of Rhinoestrus presenting different morphotypes or of two species of Rhinoestrus which are both present in southern Italy since this area is midway between eastern and African countries where these two species have been reported.
Publication Date: 2004-05-26 PubMed ID: 15158558DOI: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2004.03.015Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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This research article discusses a study conducted in southern Italy on the occurrence of nasal myiasis (a type of fly infestation) caused by two species of Rhinoestrus in horses and donkeys, and the revealation of seasonal infection trends and overlapping generations of these parasites.
Research Context and Aims
- This research was driven by the presence of nasal myiasis, caused by two specific species of Rhinoestrus (R. purpureus and Rhinoestrus usbekistanicus Gan), in horses, donkeys, and zebras.
- Nasal myiasis caused by R. purpureus and R. usbekistanicus has been reported in Egypt, Senegal, and Niger over the past 15 years. However, its presence in southern Italy’s autochthonous horses and donkeys was yet to be investigated.
- Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the presence of nasal myiasis in native horses and donkeys from southern Italy and to study the seasonal trend of infection caused by these parasites.
Research Methodology
- The investigation was conducted in two slaughterhouses in the Apulia region (site A) and one in Sicily (site B) over the span of 2003.
- The sample size included 212 horses from site A, necropsied from January to November 2003, along with 120 horses and two donkeys at site B, necropsied from January to October of the same year.
Research Findings
- Out of the total, 13 of 212 horses from site A and 5 of 120 horses from site B were found to be infected by nasal bot fly larvae. Both donkeys were also found to be positive.
- A total of 213 larvae, representing all stages of development, were collected primarily from the throat region and other parts of the upper respiratory and cerebral areas.
- The highest prevalence of infections was recorded in May for site A and in July for site B, and infections were predominantly noted during the warm season from April to September.
- The simultaneous presence of all three developmental stages of larvae at site B suggests the existence of two or more overlapping generations of these parasites.
Morphological Variations Among Rhinoestrus
- On the basis of morphological characteristics including the peritreme structures and the arrangement of spines on the dorsal surface of the third segment, some larvae showed mixed features of R. usbekistanicus and R. purpureus.
- These mixed characteristics might indicate the existence of a single Rhinoestrus species with different morphotypes, or the presence of two species of Rhinoestrus in southern Italy, given its geographical location midway between eastern and African countries where these two species have commonly been reported.
Cite This Article
APA
Otranto D, Colwell DD, Milillo P, Di Marco V, Paradies P, Napoli C, Giannetto S.
(2004).
Report in Europe of nasal myiasis by Rhinoestrus spp. in horses and donkeys: seasonal patterns and taxonomical considerations.
Vet Parasitol, 122(1), 79-88.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2004.03.015 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Animal Health and Welfare, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari, Valenzano (Bari), Italy. d.otranto@veterinaria.uniba.it
MeSH Terms
- Age Factors
- Animals
- Diptera / growth & development
- Equidae
- Female
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horse Diseases / parasitology
- Horses
- Italy / epidemiology
- Male
- Myiasis / epidemiology
- Myiasis / parasitology
- Myiasis / veterinary
- Nasal Cavity / parasitology
- Prevalence
- Seasons
- Sex Factors
Citations
This article has been cited 5 times.- Metwally DM, Albasyouni SA, Barakat IAH, Al-Turaiki IM, Almuhanna AM, Bashir MA, Baghdadi HB, El-Khadragy MF, Alajmi RA. Prevalence Rate and Molecular Characteristics of Oestrus ovis L. (Diptera, Oestridae) in Sheep and Goats from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.. Animals (Basel) 2021 Mar 4;11(3).
- El-Hawagry MSA, Abdel-Dayem MS, Dhafer HMA. The family Oestridae in Egypt and Saudi Arabia (Diptera, Oestroidea).. Zookeys 2020;947:113-142.
- Hilali MA, Mahdy OA, Attia MM. Monthly variations of Rhinoestrus spp. (Diptera: Oestridae) larvae infesting donkeys in Egypt: Morphological and molecular identification of third stage larvae.. J Adv Res 2015 Nov;6(6):1015-21.
- Liu XH, Li XY, Li K, Zhang D. Ultrastructure of antennal sensory organs of horse nasal-myiasis fly, Rhinoestrus purpureus (Diptera: Oestridae).. Parasitol Res 2015 Jul;114(7):2527-33.
- Traversa D, Otranto D. Biotechnological advances in the diagnosis of little-known parasitoses of pets.. Parasitol Res 2009 Jan;104(2):209-16.
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