Abstract
Angiostrongylus vasorum is a nematode parasite of the pulmonary arteries and heart that infects domestic and wild canids. Dogs (Canis familiaris) and red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are the most commonly affected definitive hosts. Recent studies suggest that angiostrongylosis is an emerging disease, and that red foxes may play an important role in the epidemiology of the parasite. Genetic analyses of parasites collected from dogs and foxes throughout Europe have shown that the same parasite haplotypes are commonly shared between different host species. However, the extent of genetic diversity within local A. vasorum populations and individual hosts is unknown. The objective of the present study was to assess the occurrence of genetic diversity among A. vasorum (a) recovered from different foxes within the Greater London area (a localised population, single worm per fox dataset); and (b) hosted within single foxes (multiple worms per fox dataset). During 2016, A. vasorum worms were collected from foxes culled for other purposes in London. DNA was extracted from each parasite and a partial fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (mtCOI) gene was amplified and sequenced. Sequences from the single worm dataset were compared with those published elsewhere. Combined, 19 haplotypes were described of which 15 were identified from foxes found in London, indicating that considerable genetic diversity can be detected within a local geographic area. Analysis of the multiple worm dataset identified 22 haplotypes defining worms recovered from just six foxes, emphasising the relevance of wild canines as reservoirs of genetic diversity. This is the first study to explore the genetic complexity of individual fox-hosted A. vasorum populations.
Highlights
Angiostrongylus vasorum is a nematode from the family Metastrongylidae that affects the heart and pulmonary arteries of domestic and wild canids (Jefferies et al, 2010)
This study emphasizes the importance of sequencing multiple worms within individual definitive hosts
Results showed that individual foxes were infected by genetically diverse A. vasorum parasites
Summary
Angiostrongylus vasorum is a nematode from the family Metastrongylidae that affects the heart and pulmonary arteries of domestic and wild canids (Jefferies et al, 2010). The dog (Canis familiaris) and the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) are the main definitive hosts. Other canid species such as the wolf (Canis lupus) and the coyote (Canis latrans) have been described as definitive hosts (Segovia et al, 2001; Bourque et al, 2005), as well as some non-canid species such as the Eurasian badger (Meles meles L.) and otter (Lutra lutra) (Torres et al, 2001; Santoro et al, 2017). The life cycle of A. vasorum is indirect, with various species of gastropod molluscs acting as obligatory intermediate hosts (Morgan et al, 2008). Other animals like frogs and birds can transmit the parasite as paratenic hosts (Bolt et al, 1993; Mozzer and Lima, 2015).
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