Parasitology Flashcards
Outline the importance of parasites
- Significant production loss
- Welfare
- Death of animal
- Zoonoses
- Force change in management
- Substantial cost (treatment, pasture management, manure management, quarantine, diagnostic testing, biosecurity)
What does the method of treatment of endoparasites depend on?
The life cycle
What is the significance of finding worm eggs or larvae in faeces?
- Life cycle completed
- Adult present in animal and able to cause clinical signs
- Damage has occurred, dealing with an ill animal
- Parasite has reached patency stage
- Environmental contamination has occurred
- If animal has been treated, parasite must be resistant to the treatment
Describe the clinical signs associated with liver flukes
- Jaundice in some cases
- Loss of appetite, diarrhoea, emaciation
- Bottleneck may occur in some cases
Describe the clinical signs associated with lungworms
- Persistent cough
- Lowering of head and stretching of neck
- Mouth breathing
Describe the clinical signs associated with GI worms
- Weight loss, reduced appetite, diarrhoea, anaemia
- Bottleneck
Outline the laboratory findings associated with liver flukes
- y-glutamyl transpeptidase or transferase
- Function of liver affected
- Serological assays
Outline laboratory findings associated with lungworms
- Eosinophilia in blood and tracheal washes
- Serological assays
Outline laboratory findings associated with GI worms
Plasma pepsinogen or gastrin (less common) increased
Why is plasma pepsinogen increased with GI worms?
Pepsinogen cannot be converted to pepsin due to alteration in abomasal pH
Outline some risk factors that may increase chance of liver fluke infection
- Heavy rains
- Floods
- High number of snails present
Outline the typical epidemiology of lungworms
- Unpredictable
- Dependent on climate
- Fast development (5 days from first larval stage to infection)
- Typical signs within 1 week of ingestion of larval stage
Outline the typical epidemiology of GI worms
- Spring rise
- Acute death of lambs 2-3 weeks after turnout onto pasture
Give examples of changing patterns of sheep parasitism
- Haemonchosis: previously only SE England, now more widespread (Wales and Scotland)
- Nematodirosis: spring problem but now also in Autumn
- Trichostrongylosis: traditionally in autumn in store lambs, now earlier in summer, loss of younger lambs, or in mild winters so problems later than described
What is the purpose of NADIS regarding anthelmintic use?
- Allows prediction and therefore preventative action
- This minimises the use of anthelmintics and so reduces potential for resistance development
What is meant by parasitic load?
The amount of parasite infecting the host
How can parasitic load be assessed?
- Faecal egg count
- Number of parasites in tissue
Why might a parasitic infection be undetectable via faecal egg count?
- Parasite is in pre-patent stage and not yet shedding eggs/larvae
- Single sex infection (except cestodes and trematodes)
- Strong immune response from host preventing reproduction of parasites
What are the goals of helminth control?
- Prevention of clinical disease
- Immunisation
- Economic (increase/minimise loss of productivity)
What are the options for helminth control?
- Biological
- Vaccines
- Anthelmintics
- Pasture management
Outline an example of biological control of helminths
- Duddingtonia flagrans
- Aerobic fungus that reduces number of infective larvae on pastures to an economically acceptable level
- Broad spectrum, no residues, no withdrawal period, active against drug resistant worms
- Novel mode of action and failed to be commercialised as is impractical to administer to pastures daily
Outline the use of vaccines in helminth control
- Only 1-2 available
- Antigenes, native or recombinant/synthetic
- Targets include: intestinal protein, transporters, enzymes
- Can achieve high protection rate
- Problems in commercial large scale production
- Failure to commercialise
Outline the use of chemotherapy in helminth control
- Very high development costs
- Mainstay of parasite control
- Fears of anthelmintic resistance
- e.g. benzimidazoles, imidazothiazoles, macrocyclic lactones
How is anthelmintic resistance diagnosed?
- Faecal egg count comparison before and after treatment of the same animal
- Larval hatch test (in vitro culture of larvae in presence of anthelmintic compounds)
What is the mechanism for anthelmintic resistance?
- Point mutation leading to altered protein sequence and so anthelmintic is ineffective
- Established by selective pressure
Outline some treatment strategies to combat anthelmintic resistance
- Treatment frequency as low as possible to reduce selection pressure
- Grazing management
- New anthelmintic classes introduced
- Strict compliance with prescribed treatment regimes
- Change anthelmintic class annually
- Ensure are not underdosing
- no “dose and move”
- Quarantine infected animals
- Combination therapy
- Use plants with anthelmintic activity
- Avoid overstocking of animals
What is refugia?
Parasite finding refuge in tissue and so not exposed to anthelmintic
List the common abomasal helminth parasites of small ruminants
- Ostertagia ostertagi
- Haemonchus contortus
- Teladorsagia circumcincta
- Trichostrongylus axei
What is FAMACHA and how is it used?
- A scale to objectively assess the degree of anaemia due to abomasal worms
- Aids decision of whether to administer anthelmintic dose
Describe the classical post mortem signs of Haemochus contortus
- Severe gastroenteritis characterised by extensive submucosal hyperaemia and haemorrhage in the abomasum
- erosions adn ulcers as well as gross thickening of the abomasal wall
- Some degree of haemorrhages in parts of the small intestine
- Visible presence of worms
Why is faecal examination a good primary diagnostic tool for endoparasites?
- Eggs in faeces indicates GI worm
- Larvae in faeces indicates lungworm
- Non-invasive
How does an animal become infected with lungworm?
L3 larvae, either in intermediate host or free on pasture
What causes abdominal bleeding in an Angiostrongylus vasorum infection?
- Migration of larvae from stomach/intestine to lungs
- Secrete anticoagulants
- Parasite immune-mediated thrombocytopaenia, disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC)
Describe the appearance of the heart and lungs of a dog infected with Angiostrongylus vasorum
- Alveolar infiltrates seen
- Interstitial patterning of lung
- Heart axis shifted to the left suggesting right ventricular enlargement
- Cardiac hypertrophy and pathological damages
How do sheep become infected with Haemonchus contortus?
Ingestion of L3 larval stage on damp grass
How is sudden death of lambs caused by Haemonchus contortus?
- Anaemia as a consequence of worms feeding
- Loss of appetite
List the parasitic worms that can be found in the intestine of pigs
- Hyostrongylus rubidus
- Trichuris suis
- Strongyloides ransomi
- Oesophagostamum spp
- Ascaris suum
- Isospora suis
- Trichinella spiralis (adult)
- Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus
How do pigs become infected with Trichuris suis?
Ingestion of eggs containing L1 larvae
What can be used to treat Trichuris ovis infection?
Common anthelmintics e.g. fenbendazole, benzimidazoles, levamisole
What is a proglottid?
A segment of cestode worms, containing an ovary and genital pore. It matures as it moves towards to last segment of the cestode, and is shed as the infective agent