Abstract
The amphibian trade has an important role in Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) persistence, for at least 28 amphibian species can serve as vectors. The objectives of this work are to evaluate the presence and prevalence of Bd in amphibian traded in two petshops in Mexico City, as well as to verify their presence in wild amphibian populations of species traded. It was found that 92% of amphibians sold in the two petshops were captured free-living, and 37.3% of these animals were infected with Bd, according to histological analysis. The prevalence of 30.8% of Bd in wild amphibians at the wild capture sites was detected by means of DNA amplification. No significant differences were found between prevalence of wild and trade amphibians, but the trend was higher for trade amphibians. The importance of amphibian management and conservation plans has been growing in the last years. The pet trade and its capture from the wild turn these trade routes and their captive management into means of pathogenic dispersion, which may increase the risk of disease outbreaks.Keywords: Chytridiomycosis, pet trade, optical microscopy, nested PCR.
Highlights
El comercio de anfibios tiene un papel importante en la persistencia del Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), ya que al menos 28 especies pueden servir como vectores
Se encontró que el 92% de los anfibios comercializados fueron capturados de vida libre, y el 37.3% estuvieron infectados con Bd de acuerdo con análisis histológicos
The amphibian trade has an important role in Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) persistence, for at least 28 amphibian species can serve as vectors
Summary
El muestreo de los anfibios se llevó a cabo en dos mercados de mascotas, Nuevo San Lázaro y Emilio Carranza de la Ciudad de México, entre septiembre del 2008 y abril del 2010. Juveniles y renacuajos con menos de 72 horas de fallecidos y que presentaran enrojecimiento de la epidermis en el área inguinal, desprendimiento de la epidermis, hiperqueratinización, deformidad o ausencia de las estructuras bucales (según Berger et al, 1998; Nichols et al, 2001; Rachowicz, 2002). El diagnóstico histológico para determinar la presencia de Bd se realizó mediante el procedimiento sugerido por Longcore et al (1999), que consiste en la observación por microscopia óptica de fragmentos de 2 a 3 mm de tejido dérmico fresco interdigital y de la ingle en el caso de los adultos y juveniles, y las estructuras bucales para los renacuajos, mediante preparaciones húmedas revisadas a 40X y 100X, para buscar zoosporangios en el interior de las células epiteliales
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