Eosinophilic meningoencephalitis associated with rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) migration in two nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) and an opossum (Didelphis virginiana) in the southeastern United States - PubMed (original) (raw)

Eosinophilic meningoencephalitis associated with rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) migration in two nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) and an opossum (Didelphis virginiana) in the southeastern United States

Martha F Dalton et al. Int J Parasitol Parasites Wildl. 2017.

Abstract

Angiostrongylus cantonensis, the rat lungworm, was the cause of neural larval migrans in two nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) and one Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) from the southeastern United States. Histologic findings in all three cases included eosinophilic meningoencephalitis with variable numbers of nematode larvae in the meninges or the neuroparenchyma. In two of the three cases, nematodes were extracted from brain tissue via a "squash prep" method. Identification of the nematodes was confirmed by amplification and sequence analysis of the partial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene from all three cases. Sequences (704bp) from the two cases from Louisiana were identical and 99.7% similar to nematodes detected in the armadillo from Florida. As A. cantonensis is now considered endemic in the southern United States, it should be considered as an important differential for any wild or domestic animal or human patient with neurological signs and eosinophilic meningitis. Many wildlife species frequently consume snails and slugs and could serve as sentinels for the detection of this parasite in regions where the presence of this parasite has not been confirmed. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of neural larval migrans due to A. cantonensis in an armadillo and provides additional documentation that this nematode can cause disease in wildlife species in the southeastern United States.

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Figures

Image 1

Graphical abstract

Fig. 1

Fig. 1

Caudal end of a male nematode extracted from the brain of Armadillo 1. Arrow indicates bursal rays.

Fig. 2

Fig. 2

Neuroparenchyma. Fig. 2a: Armadillo B. High numbers of eosinophils and lymphocytes expand the perivascular spaces. A focus of hemorrhage, eosinophils, and glial cells interrupts the neuroparenchyma. Photomicrographs are stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). Bar = 200 μm. Fig. 2b: Armadillo A. Cross section of a nematode larva (200 μm width) within the thalamus is characterized by a smooth cuticle, coelomyarian musculature, lateral cords, and a distinct pharynx (consistent with a metastrongyle). No inflammatory cells surround the nematode. H&E, Bar = 50 μm.

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