Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 941-954 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | Parasitology Research |
| Volume | 114 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Early online date | 7 Jan 2015 |
| Publication status | Published - 21 Feb 2015 |
Abstract
Many factors can influence the parasite load of animal hosts, but integrative studies that simultaneously investigate several factors are still rare in many taxonomic groups. This study investigates the influence of host species, host population density, parasite transmission mode, sex, and two temporal (month, year) factors on gastrointestinal parasite prevalence and fecal egg counts of two endemic primate species from Madagascar, Microcebus ravelobensis and Microcebus murinus. A total of 646 fecal samples were available and analyzed from three dry seasons. Six different helminth egg morphotypes were found, and these were Subulura sp. (14.51 % prevalence), strongyle eggs (12.95 %), Ascaris sp. (7.94 %), Lemuricola sp. (0.17 %), and two forms of tapeworms (Hymenolepis spp.) (1.73 and 0.69 %). Coinfection with more than one egg type was observed in 21.22 % of the samples containing eggs. Multivariate analyses revealed that host species and sex did neither explain significant variation in the prevalence and fecal egg counts of parasites with direct life cycles (Ascaris sp., strongyle egg type, Lemuricola sp.) nor of arthropod-transmitted parasites (Subulura sp.). However, fecal egg counts of Subulura sp. differed significantly between study sites, and the prevalence of Subulura sp. and of parasites with direct life cycles was influenced by temporal parameters, mainly by differences between study years and partly between months. When comparing the findings with the yearly and seasonal rainfall patterns in the area, most results are in accordance with the hypothesis of an increased vulnerability of the host toward infection under some sort of environmental challenge.
Keywords
- Cestodes, Disease susceptibility, Endoparasites, Lemurs, Nematodes, Seasonality
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Microbiology(all)
- Parasitology
- veterinary(all)
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
- Insect Science
- Medicine(all)
- Infectious Diseases
Sustainable Development Goals
Cite this
- Standard
- Harvard
- Apa
- Vancouver
- BibTeX
- RIS
In: Parasitology Research, Vol. 114, No. 3, 21.02.2015, p. 941-954.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Variations in the excretion patterns of helminth eggs in two sympatric mouse lemur species (Microcebus murinus and M. ravelobensis) in northwestern Madagascar
AU - Radespiel, Ute
AU - Schaber, K.
AU - Kessler, S. E.
AU - Schaarschmidt, Frank
AU - Strube, Christina
N1 - Funding Information: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest with regard to this publication. The study was partly funded by the DFG (U.R., Ra 502/9) and by NSF Dissertation Improvement Grant (S.E.K., #0961779), PEO Scholar Award (S.E.K.), the Animal Behavior Society (S.E.K.), Lewis and Clark Fund of the American Philosophical Society (S.E.K.), American Society of Primatologists (S.E.K.), Sigma Xi (National Chapter, S.E.K., grant #G2009101504), Sigma Xi (Arizona State University chapter, S.E.K.), Arizona State University Graduate and Professional Student Association (S.E.K.), and the Arizona State University School of Human Evolution and Social Change (S.E.K.). Publisher Copyright: © 2015, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.
PY - 2015/2/21
Y1 - 2015/2/21
N2 - Many factors can influence the parasite load of animal hosts, but integrative studies that simultaneously investigate several factors are still rare in many taxonomic groups. This study investigates the influence of host species, host population density, parasite transmission mode, sex, and two temporal (month, year) factors on gastrointestinal parasite prevalence and fecal egg counts of two endemic primate species from Madagascar, Microcebus ravelobensis and Microcebus murinus. A total of 646 fecal samples were available and analyzed from three dry seasons. Six different helminth egg morphotypes were found, and these were Subulura sp. (14.51 % prevalence), strongyle eggs (12.95 %), Ascaris sp. (7.94 %), Lemuricola sp. (0.17 %), and two forms of tapeworms (Hymenolepis spp.) (1.73 and 0.69 %). Coinfection with more than one egg type was observed in 21.22 % of the samples containing eggs. Multivariate analyses revealed that host species and sex did neither explain significant variation in the prevalence and fecal egg counts of parasites with direct life cycles (Ascaris sp., strongyle egg type, Lemuricola sp.) nor of arthropod-transmitted parasites (Subulura sp.). However, fecal egg counts of Subulura sp. differed significantly between study sites, and the prevalence of Subulura sp. and of parasites with direct life cycles was influenced by temporal parameters, mainly by differences between study years and partly between months. When comparing the findings with the yearly and seasonal rainfall patterns in the area, most results are in accordance with the hypothesis of an increased vulnerability of the host toward infection under some sort of environmental challenge.
AB - Many factors can influence the parasite load of animal hosts, but integrative studies that simultaneously investigate several factors are still rare in many taxonomic groups. This study investigates the influence of host species, host population density, parasite transmission mode, sex, and two temporal (month, year) factors on gastrointestinal parasite prevalence and fecal egg counts of two endemic primate species from Madagascar, Microcebus ravelobensis and Microcebus murinus. A total of 646 fecal samples were available and analyzed from three dry seasons. Six different helminth egg morphotypes were found, and these were Subulura sp. (14.51 % prevalence), strongyle eggs (12.95 %), Ascaris sp. (7.94 %), Lemuricola sp. (0.17 %), and two forms of tapeworms (Hymenolepis spp.) (1.73 and 0.69 %). Coinfection with more than one egg type was observed in 21.22 % of the samples containing eggs. Multivariate analyses revealed that host species and sex did neither explain significant variation in the prevalence and fecal egg counts of parasites with direct life cycles (Ascaris sp., strongyle egg type, Lemuricola sp.) nor of arthropod-transmitted parasites (Subulura sp.). However, fecal egg counts of Subulura sp. differed significantly between study sites, and the prevalence of Subulura sp. and of parasites with direct life cycles was influenced by temporal parameters, mainly by differences between study years and partly between months. When comparing the findings with the yearly and seasonal rainfall patterns in the area, most results are in accordance with the hypothesis of an increased vulnerability of the host toward infection under some sort of environmental challenge.
KW - Cestodes
KW - Disease susceptibility
KW - Endoparasites
KW - Lemurs
KW - Nematodes
KW - Seasonality
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84925496612&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00436-014-4259-0
DO - 10.1007/s00436-014-4259-0
M3 - Article
C2 - 25563604
AN - SCOPUS:84925496612
VL - 114
SP - 941
EP - 954
JO - Parasitology Research
JF - Parasitology Research
SN - 0932-0113
IS - 3
ER -