Island foxes (Urocyon littoralis) are endemic to six of the eight California Channel Islands (USA). The island fox is classified as a threatened species by the State of California, and recently three of the six subspecies have experienced abrupt population declines. As part of a continuing effort to determine the cause of the declines, we tested island fox serum samples collected in 1988 (n = 1...

The heartworm Dirofilaria immitis is a filarial parasitic nematode infecting dogs and other mammals worldwide causing fatal complications. Here, we present the first large-scale survey of the adult heartworm transcriptome by generation and analysis of 4005 expressed sequence tags, identifying about 1800 genes and expanding the available sequence information for the parasite significantly. Brugi...

Aim: The aim was to study the pathomorphological changes through thoracic radiography and status of oxidative stress parameters in heartworm affected dogs in Odisha. Materials and Methods: A total of 16 dogs with clinically established diagnosis of dirofilariasis by wet blood smear and modified Knott’s test and equal numbers of dogs as control were included in this study. The present study was ...

SNAP® 4Dx® Plus (IDEXX Laboratories, Westbrook, ME) is a commercially available in-office test kit for the simultaneous detection of Dirofilaria immitis antigen and antibodies to Anaplasma phagocytophilum, A. platys, Borrelia burgdorferi, Ehrlichia canis, and E. ewingii in blood, plasma, or serum of dogs. AccuPlexTM4 test (ANTECH Diagnostics®, Irvine, CA) is a recently launched reference labora...

C anine and feline heartworm diagnostic methodologies as well as treatment and prevention strategies have changed considerably during the previous decade.We have experienced an unprecedented increase in numbers and kinds of available medications and diagnostic aids, and the capabilities of pet owners to acquire information of both a technical and lay nature. This can be both beneficial and detr...

Adaptation of pinnipeds to the marine habitat imposed parallel evolutions in their parasites. Ancestral pinnipeds must have harboured sucking lice, which were ancestors of the seal louse Echinophthirius horridus. The seal louse is one of the few insects that successfully adjusted to the marine environment. Adaptations such as keeping an air reservoir and the ability to hold on to and move on th...

Canine heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) disease affects wild canids and may be a factor impacting the health and population dynamics of coyotes (Canis latrans). Coyotes may serve also as a potential reservoir for transmission of these parasites to domestic dogs. We investigated 920 coyotes harvested by hunters and trappers throughout Illinois (USA) from 1995-1997. The objectives of the study wer...

The aim of this study was to make the first report on canine heartworm disease in the state of Rondônia and confirm its transmission in this state. Blood samples were randomly collected from 727 dogs in the city of Porto Velho. The samples were analyzed to search for microfilariae and circulating antigens, using three different techniques: optical microscopy on thick blood smears stained with G...

Serological tests offer a potentially powerful tool for monitoring parasites in wildlife populations. However, such tests must be validated before using them with target wildlife populations. We evaluated in coyotes (Canis latrans) the performance of a commercially available serological test used to detect canine heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) in domestic dogs. We obtained 265 coyote carcasses...

Heartworm infection is one of the most important parasitic diseases in dogs and an increasing number of cases are reported each year by necropsy in Ahvaz. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of Dirofilaria immitisinfection and to investigate the risk factors related to heartworm disease in urban dogs in this area. Blood samples were collected from 100 dogs from Feb 2007 to Feb ...