The medical and economic importance of ticks has long been recognized due to their ability to transmit diseases to humans and animals. Ticks cause great economic losses to livestock, and adversely affect livestock hosts in several ways. Loss of blood is a direct effect of ticks acting as potential vector for haemo-protozoa and helminth parasites. Blood sucking by large numbers of ticks causes reduction in live weight and anemia among domestic animals, while their bites also reduce the quality of hides. However, major losses caused by ticks are due to their ability to transmit protozoan, rickettsial and viral diseases of livestock, which are of great economic importance world-wide. There are quite a few methods for controlling ticks, but every method has certain shortcomings. The present review is focused on ticks importance and their control.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic ; immunology ; parasitology ; Humans ; Insecticides ; Parasitic Diseases ; prevention & control ; Ticks ; immunology ; Vaccines ; therapeutic use

We describe here a rare case of traumatic myiasis occurred in August 2014, caused by an association of 2 Diptera species, Sarcophaga tibialis Macquart (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) and Lucilia sericata (Meigen) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), in a domestic cat in northern Italy. Species identification was based on adult male morphology. The present case is the first report of S. tibialis as an agent of myiasis in Italy, and also the first ever report of myiasis caused by an association of S. tibialis and L. sericata. The cat developed an extensive traumatic myiasis in a large wound on the rump, which was treated pharmacologically and surgically. The biology, ecology, and distribution of S. tibialis and L. sericata are also discussed. A literature review is provided on cases of myiasis caused by S. tibialis, and cases of myiasis by L. sericata involving cats worldwide and humans and animals in Italy.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic/parasitology ; Cat Diseases/*parasitology ; Cats ; Diptera/growth & development/*physiology ; Female ; Italy ; Larva/growth & development/physiology ; Male ; Myiasis/parasitology/*veterinary ; Sarcophagidae/growth & development/*physiology

Ticks were collected from 35 animals from 5 provinces and 3 metropolitan cities during 2012. Ticks also were collected by tick drag from 4 sites in Gyeonggi-do (2) and Jeollabuk-do (2) Provinces. A total of 612 ticks belonging to 6 species and 3 genera were collected from mammals and a bird (n=573) and by tick drag (n=39). Haemaphyalis longicornis (n=434) was the most commonly collected tick, followed by H. flava (158), Ixodes nipponensis (11), Amblyomma testudinarium (7), H. japonica (1), and H. formosensis (1). H. longicornis and H. flava were collected from all animal hosts examined. For animal hosts (n>1), the highest Tick Index (TI) was observed for domestic dogs (29.6), followed by Siberian roe deer (17.4), water deer (14.4), and raccoon dogs (1.3). A total of 402 H. longicornis (adults 86, 21.4%; nymphs 160, 39.8%; larvae 156, 38.9%) were collected from wild and domestic animals. A total of 158 H. flava (n=158) were collected from wild and domestic animals and 1 ring-necked pheasant, with a higher proportion of adults (103, 65.2%), while nymphs and larvae only accounted for 12.7% (20) and 22.2% (35), respectively. Only 7 A. testudinarium were collected from the wild boar (6 adults) and Eurasian badger (1 nymph), while only 5 I. nipponensis were collected from the water deer (4 adults) and a raccoon dog (1 adult). One adult female H. formosensis was first collected from vegetation by tick drag from Mara Island, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do Province.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic ; Animals, Wild ; Female ; Male ; Prevalence ; Republic of Korea ; Tick Infestations/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Ticks/*classification

Neospora caninum is an important cause of abortion in cattle, and dogs are its only known definitive host. Its seroprevalence among domestic urban and rural dogs and feral raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides koreensis) in Korea was studied by indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and by the neospora agglutination test (NAT), respectively. Antibodies to N. caninum were found in 8.3% of urban dogs and in 21.6% of dogs at dairy farms. Antibody titers ranged from 1: 50 to 1: 400. Antibodies to N. caninum were found in six (23%) of 26 raccoon dogs. However, the potential role of raccoon dogs as a source of horizontal transmission of bovine neosporosis needs further investigation. The results of this study suggest that there is a close relationship between N. caninum infection among dairy farm dogs and cattle in Korea. This study reports for the first time upon the seroprevalence of N. caninum infection in raccoon dogs in Korea.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic ; Animals, Wild ; Antibodies, Protozoan/*blood ; Carnivora/*parasitology ; Coccidiosis/epidemiology/*veterinary ; Dog Diseases/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Dogs ; Korea/epidemiology ; Neospora/*immunology ; Seroepidemiologic Studies

Extensive previous studies on taxonomy, behavior/bionomics and control of Anopheles sinensis are reviewed and summarized. Recent molecular identification revealed that the population of An. sinensis complex includes An. sinensis, An. pullus, An. lesteri and at least two new species, and An. yatsushiroensis is synonmy of An. pullus. An. sinensis is the main vector specie of vivax malaria in Korea. Larvae of An. sinensis breed in wide range of habitats which are naturally-made clean water, stagnant or flowing; main habitats include rice fields, ditches, streams, irrigation cannals, marshes, ponds, ground pools, etc. Their host preferences are highly zoophilic. Human blood rate is very low (0.7-1.7%) ; nevertheless An. sinensis readily feeds on man when domestic animals are not found near by. They feed on hosts throughout the night from dusk to dawn with a peak period of 02: 00-04: 00 hours; they are slightly more exophagic (biting outdoors) ; much larger numbers come into the room when light is on. Main resting places are outdoors such as grasses, vegetable fields and rice fields. A mark-release-recapture study resulted that 37.1% was recaptured within 1 km, 29.4% at 1-3 km, 21.1% at 3-6 km, 10.3% at 6-9 km and 2.1% at 9-12 km distance. An. sinensis hibernate outdoors (mostly under part of dense grasses) during October-March. At the end of the hibernation period (March-April) they feed on cows at daytime. Until today any single measure to effectively control An. sinensis population has not been found. Indoor residual spray with a long-lasting insecticide can not reduce vector population densities, but shorten their life spans in some degree, so contributes to malaria control.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic/parasitology ; Anopheles/parasitology/*physiology ; Bites and Stings ; *Ecosystem ; Feeding Behavior ; Humans ; *Insect Vectors ; Korea ; Larva/physiology ; *Malaria, Vivax ; Mosquito Control ; Plasmodium vivax ; Population Density ; Seasons

The principal objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of toxoplasmosis in household and stray cats in Seoul, Republic of Korea. We collected blood samples from 72 stray and 80 household cats, and all samples were examined by ELISA and nested PCR. The overall positive rates of Toxoplasma gondii in stray cats were 38.9% (28/72), with 15.3% (11/72) in ELISA and 30.6% (22/72) in PCR. The positive rate in male stray cats was slightly higher than that of female stray cats. The highest positive rate of T. gondii infection was noted in Gangnam and Songpa populations in ELISA and in Gwangjin population in PCR. In household cats, however, we could not detect any specific antibodies or DNA for T. gondii. In conclusion, we recognized that the infection rate of toxoplasmosis in stray cats in Seoul was considerably high but household cats were free from infection.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic/parasitology ; Antibodies, Protozoan/blood ; Cat Diseases/*epidemiology/immunology/parasitology ; Cats ; Female ; Male ; Prevalence ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Toxoplasma/genetics/immunology/*isolation & purification ; Toxoplasmosis, Animal/*epidemiology/immunology/parasitology

The breeding of domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) for human consumption has a long tradition in China. Infections that can affect the production of meat or even be transmitted from animals to humans are important to monitor, especially for public health reasons as well as for their impact on animal health. Thus, a total of 1,132 domestic rabbit sera from 4 regions in China were collected for serological screening for Encephalitozoon cuniculi and for Toxoplasma gondii by ELISA and modified agglutination test (MAT), respectively. Antibodies to E. cuniculi were detected in 248/1,132 (21.9%) sera tested while antibodies against T. gondii revealed a seroprevalence of 51/1,132 (4.5%). We believe that the present results are of epidemiological implications and public health importance due to the acknowledged susceptibility of humans to E. cuniculi and T. gondii infections. Therefore, routine screening tests of domestic rabbits are proposed considering the zoonotic potential of these parasites.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic/blood/microbiology/parasitology ; Antibodies, Fungal/*blood ; Antibodies, Protozoan/*blood ; China/epidemiology ; Encephalitozoon cuniculi/*immunology/isolation & purification ; Encephalitozoonosis/blood/microbiology/*veterinary ; Female ; Male ; Rabbits/blood/microbiology/parasitology ; Seroepidemiologic Studies ; Toxoplasma/*immunology/isolation & purification ; Toxoplasmosis, Animal/*blood/parasitology

To understand the maintenance and transmission of SFTS virus, the potential vector ticks were collected from sheep, cattle and dogs in the endemic areas of SFTSV in Shandong Province. Among the collected ticks, the dominant species was H. longicornis ticks. Real-time PCR for RNA detection, virus isolation and characterization, genomic sequencing, phylogenetic and antigenic analysis were performed in this investigation. The results showed that the SFTS viral RNA was detected in 2.14% H. longicornis, and a SFTS virus was isolated from one of viral RNA positive ticks collected from sheep. Whole genome analysis of the SFTSV isolates with 11 human-origin SFTS virus revealed a highly pairwise similarity, and the growth curve analysis showed nearly identical in virus yield and the dynamic of virus reproduction compared to human derived viral isolates. Immunofluorescence and neutralization test showed identical serological reaction character of the two different origin viral strains. In this study, the characters of a SFTSV isolate was firstly described, which suggested that the tick species H. longicornis acting important vector role in the transmission of SFTS virus.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic ; parasitology ; Arachnid Vectors ; virology ; Bunyaviridae Infections ; transmission ; virology ; Cattle ; Cell Line ; Dogs ; Humans ; Livestock ; parasitology ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phlebovirus ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Phylogeny ; Sheep ; Ticks ; virology

The present study was undertaken to investigate the infection status of Cryptosporidium parvum in the villagers and the reservoir hosts in several rural areas in Korea. A total 5, 262 fecal samples were collected from the inhabitants residing at Gangwon-do, Chungcheongbuk-do, Jeollanam-do, and Gyeongsangnam-do between the dates of September, 2001 to June, 2002. In addition, 1, 453 fecal samples were collected from livestock reared in Gokseong-gun, Jeollanam-do and Chungju-si, Chungcheongbuk-do. All the fecal smears were prepared by formalin-ether sedimentation, and examined by light microscopy after modified acid-fast staining. The overall positive rate of human cryptosporidiosis was 3.3%. Gokseong-gun, Jeollanam-do showed a 8.2% positive rate and appeared as the highest endemic area among the surveyed areas. Haman-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do showed a 0.4% positive rate and was the lowest endemic area. The positive rate of livestock infection in Gokseong-gun, Jeollanam-do was 94%, which was more than ten times higher than that of Chungju-si, Chungcheongbuk-do (9.3%). From these results, it was revealed that cryptosporidiosis was an endemic disease in some rural areas of Korea, and the livestock could be an important source of human infection.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Distribution ; Aged ; Animals ; Animals, Domestic/*parasitology ; Cattle ; Cattle Diseases/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cryptosporidiosis/*epidemiology/parasitology/veterinary ; Cryptosporidium parvum/*isolation & purification ; Feces/parasitology ; Female ; Human ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Korea/epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Parasite Egg Count ; Prevalence ; *Rural Population ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Swine ; Swine Diseases/*epidemiology/parasitology

Echinococcus granulosus is the causative agent of cystic echinococcosis with medical and veterinary importance in China. Our main objective was to discuss the genotypes and genetic diversity of E. granulosus present in domestic animals and humans in western China. A total of 45 hydatid cyst samples were collected from sheep, humans, and a yak and subjected to an analysis of the sequences of mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) gene. The amplified PCR product for all samples was a 1,068 bp band. The phylogenetic analysis showed that all 45 samples were identified as E. granulosus (genotype G1). Ten haplotypes were detected among the samples, with the main haplotype being H1. The haplotype diversity was 0.626, while the nucleotide diversity was 0.001. These results suggested that genetic diversity was low among our samples collected from the west of China based on cytb gene analysis. These findings may provide more information on molecular characteristics of E. granulosus from this Chinese region.
Animals ; Animals, Domestic/parasitology ; Base Composition ; Base Sequence ; Cattle/*parasitology ; China ; Cytochromes b/*genetics ; DNA, Helminth/genetics ; Echinococcosis ; Echinococcus granulosus/classification/*genetics ; Genetic Variation ; Haplotypes/genetics ; Humans ; Mitochondria/genetics ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/*veterinary ; Sequence Alignment ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Sheep/*parasitology ; Tibet