Infection status of the estuarine turtles Kinosternon integrum and Trachemys scripta with Gnathostoma binucleatum in Sinaloa, Mexico Estado de la infección con Gnathostoma binucleatum de las tortugas estuarinas Kinosternon integrum y Trachemys scripta en Sinaloa, México (original) (raw)
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Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2010
Human gnathostomosis, a serious public health issue in Mexico, is endemic to Sinaloa. The disease is mainly caused by consumption of the raw meat of freshwater or estuarine fi shes infected with the advanced third stage larvae (AL3) of Gnathostoma binucleatum. In the present study, we examined estuarine turtles with a sample consisting of 23 Trachemys scripta and 5 Kinosternon integrum from Sinaloa, Mexico for the presence of Gnathostoma larvae; such examination was made by the pressing method of skeletal muscles between 2 glass plates. The results showed that both turtles harbored G. binucleatum AL3; identifi cation was achieved by morphology and also by PCR/sequencing of the ITS2 region of ribosomal DNA of the larvae. Infection prevalence was higher for K. integrum (80%) than for T. scripta (69.6%), but heavy infection (> 10 AL3/turtle) was observed in the larger sized individuals of T. scripta. Consumption of the raw meat of these turtles represents a risk to acquire the disease.
Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2010
Human gnathostomosis, a serious public health issue in Mexico, is endemic to Sinaloa. The disease is mainly caused by consumption of the raw meat of freshwater or estuarine fi shes infected with the advanced third stage larvae (AL3) of Gnathostoma binucleatum. In the present study, we examined estuarine turtles with a sample consisting of 23 Trachemys scripta and 5 Kinosternon integrum from Sinaloa, Mexico for the presence of Gnathostoma larvae; such examination was made by the pressing method of skeletal muscles between 2 glass plates. The results showed that both turtles harbored G. binucleatum AL3; identifi cation was achieved by morphology and also by PCR/sequencing of the ITS2 region of ribosomal DNA of the larvae. Infection prevalence was higher for K. integrum (80%) than for T. scripta (69.6%), but heavy infection (> 10 AL3/turtle) was observed in the larger sized individuals of T. scripta. Consumption of the raw meat of these turtles represents a risk to acquire the disease.
Morphology of Gnathostoma spp. isolated from natural hosts in Sinaloa, Mexico
Parasitology Research, 2002
Gnathostomosis is an emerging public health problem in Sinaloa, Mexico, where an increasing number of human cases have been diagnosed since 1989. The present study was carried out to determine the presence of the parasite in other natural hosts from the area. Birds, fish, opossums and raccoons were captured from local dams and lagoons. The flesh from bird and fish specimens was ground and examined under a 100 W light bulb. Larvae were processed for light and electron microscopy. A total of 368 advanced stage 3 (AL3) larvae were found in 300 ichthyophagous birds, with Egretta alba exhibiting the highest infection rate. A total of 4,156 fish were examined, of which six species were infected with AL3 larvae: Arius guatemalensis (blue sea catfish), Dormitator latifrons (Pacific fat sleeper), Gobiomorus sp. (fat sleeper), Oreochromis sp. (Nile tilapia), Cichlasoma beani (Sinaloan cichlid or green guapote) and Eleotris picta (spotted sleeper). Twenty larvae from birds were used to infect domestic cats and dogs. Young adult worms were recovered from the stomach of a cat with a 17 day infection and from a dog with a 35 day infection. Larvae exhibited four rows of hooklets on the head bulb, whereas the young adults had nine rows of hooklets. The cuticular spines of adult worms along the body evolved from single-pointed, bi-or trifurcated spines. Nuclei were counted in intestinal cells examined in serial sections of larvae recovered from a great heron and a fish, in which a mean of 1.6 nuclei/cell was found, corresponding to data published for Gnathostoma binucleatum. Although the external morphology of both larvae and adults are in agreement with previous descriptions of Gnathostoma spinigerum, the results indicate that natural host infections in Sinaloa may be caused by either G. spinigerum or G. binucleatum.
Parasitology Research, 2008
Gnathostomosis is a typical fish-borne zoonotic parasitosis and is currently a serious public health issue in Mexico. Among several Gnathostoma species present in wild animals in Mexico, Gnathostoma binucleatum is the only proven species responsible for human diseases, and the advanced third stage larvae (AL3) of G. binucleatum have been found in over 20 species of fish in this country. In Sinaloa State, two fish species, Dormitator latifrons and Eleotris picta, were heavily contaminated with G. binucleatum AL3. When we analyzed the relationship between the size of the fish and the density of infection with G. binucleatum AL3, the distribution patterns of AL3 were markedly different between these two fish species. Apparent size-dependent accumulation was observed in E. picta but not in D. latifrons, suggesting that E. picta is a paratenic host whereas D. latifrons is a second intermediate host.
Acute outbreak of gnathostomiasis in a fishing community in Sinaloa, Mexico
Parasitology International, 2003
An increasing number of human cases of gnathostomiasis have been reported in Sinaloa, Mexico, most of whom have a custom of eating of raw fish dishes such as 'cebiche'. Here we report five adult patients, three women and two men, having an acute episode of vomiting and abdominal pain a few minutes after eating a dish of cebiche prepared from a spotted sleeper perch (Eleotris picta) fished from a nearby lake in southern Sinaloa. All five patients experienced acute throat pain, chest and joint pains, headache and fever. One patient, a 55-year-old male, was hospitalized with suspected pancreatitis and pneumonia. By 8-9 days later, all five patients developed between three and 12 edematous, migrating skin lesions on the back, abdomen, upper and lower extremities, face, eye and scalp. By ELISA, all of them were sero-positive to Gnathostoma doloresi antigen and had elevated IgE levels. Eosinophilia was found in two patients. These patients lived in an agricultural and fishing community. In this community we carried out a sero-epidemiological survey and study of living conditions in a random sample of 309 individuals distributed in 74 households. Frequent consumption of raw fish was reported in 36% of households, and 12 individuals had a clinical history of migrating skin lesions. The sero-prevalence to Gnathostoma antigens was 34.95%. Five fish species and four species of ichthyophagous birds collected from three lakes in the village and a nearby estuary were infected with the advanced third-stage larvae of G. binucleatum, a species found in Ecuador and Mexico. The results describe the first known outbreak of acute gnathostomiasis on the American continent. ᮊ
Study of the ethiological agent of gnathostomosis in Nayarit, Mexico
Parasitology International, 2002
In order to clarify the specific identity of the ethiological agent of human gnathostomosis in Nayarit State, Mexico, morphological and molecular studies were conducted on advanced third stage larvae obtained from human and fish tissue. Cathorops fuerthii from Agua Brava lagoons complex, was the only fish species found to be infected among four species surveyed. Morphological variability does not allow specific identification of the larvae. Internal transcribed spacer 2 of the ribosomal DNA was sequenced for six larvae (five from fish, one from human tissue). Low divergence in the sequences of Nayarit larvae and Gnathostoma binucleatum (0.24% or less) indicate that the larvae examined belong to this species. ᮊ
Experimental infection of Gnathostoma spinigerum larvae in prawns and tadpoles
PubMed, 2001
Naturally captured Lanchester's freshwater prawns (Macrobrachium lanchesteri) and farm-bred Rana regulosa tadpoles were assessed for their capability of being the first or second intermediate hosts of Gnathostoma spinigerum. Seventy specimens from each animal group were randomized into a control group and investigated for larvae of G. spinigerum by pressing them between two pieces of glass and examination under stereomicroscope. No Gnathostoma larvae were found in the entire control group. Another 120 specimens of each animal were used in two treatment groups; 60 being exposed to the first-stage larvae, G. spinigerum, and 60 exposed to cyclops containing the third-stage larvae for 7 days. No larvae of G. spinigerum were found in the prawns of both treatment groups that resembled tadpoles exposed to the first-stage larvae. In contrast, 18.3% of tadpoles, which were exposed to cyclops containing third-stage larvae, were infected. Lanchester's freshwater prawns cannot serve as intermediate host of G. spinigerum, while R. regulosa can serve as the second intermediate host.
Clinical manifestations and immunodiagnosis of gnathostomiasis in Culiacan, Mexico
The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 1998
Gnathostomiasis was first described in Mexico in 1970, and endemic areas have been spreading in six states of this country. In Culiacan, Sinaloa, 300 cases of cutaneous larva migrans were recorded between January 1992 and December 1995. In addition, a Gnathostoma larva was surgically removed from the eye of one patient. Cutaneous lesions were observed mainly on the face, neck, arms, and legs. About 70% of the patients showed eosinophilia. A skin biopsy was carried out on 35 patients and the parasite was identified in histopathologic sections of 12 of these patients. In four patients, the larva migrated out spontaneously from the skin. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using a crude somatic extract of adult Gnathostoma doloresi worms showed that 93% of the patients were seropositive, confirming the reliability of clinical diagnosis. A total of 14 advanced third-stage Gnathostoma larvae were found in four species of ichthyophagous birds captured on dams and dikes near the city of C...