Parasites in brains of wild rodents (Arvicolinae and Murinae) in the city of Leipzig, Germany

Publication date: Available online 18 September 2019Source: International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and WildlifeAuthor(s): Patrick Waindok, Gökben Özbakış-Beceriklisoy, Elisabeth Janecek-Erfurth, Andrea Springer, Martin Pfeffer, Michael Leschnik, Christina StrubeAbstractSmall rodents serve as intermediate or paratenic hosts for a variety of parasites and may participate in the transmission of these parasites into synanthropic cycles. Parasites with neuroinvasive stages, such as Toxoplasma gondii or Toxocara canis, can cause detrimental damage in the brain of intermediate or paratenic hosts. Therefore, the occurrence of neuroinvasive parasite stages was evaluated in brains of wild rodents captured in the city of Leipzig, Germany. In addition, a few specimens from the cities of Hanover, Germany, and Vienna, Austria were included, resulting in a total of 716 rodents collected between 2011 and 2016. Brains were investigated for parasitic stages by microscopic examination of native tissue, artificially digested tissue as well as Giemsa-stained digestion solution to verify positive results. Infective stages of zoonotic ascarids or other helminths were not detected in any sample, while coccidian cysts were found in 10.1% (95% CI: 7.9–12.5%; 72/716) of examined brains. The most abundant rodent species in the study was the bank vole (Myodes glareolus; Arvicolinae), showing an infection rate with cerebral cysts of 13.9% (95% CI: 11.0–17.8%; 62/445), while 2.7% (95% CI...
Source: International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife - Category: Parasitology Source Type: research