Histopathological study of gastric infection with Spirocerca lupi in Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus manul)

Abstract

Spirocerca lupi (family: Spirocercidae; order: Spirurida) are parasitic nematodes found in the esophagus of cats and dogs, as well as in other carnivore animals throughout the tropical, subtropical, and temperate countries of Asia and the Americas. These animals become infested by eating an intermediate host or a transport host. In adult felines, this parasite often resides in the mucosa of the esophagus, where it forms granulomatous nodules. In this work, a wild immature female Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus manul) that was younger than 1 year old was killed by a herding dog (heeler) in Mashhad, Iran. After necropsy, parasite samples were gathered from the stomach and after clarification by lactophenol, the nematodes were recognized as Spirocerca lupi. Microscopic diagnoses in the stomach include granulomatous nodules, mucosal gland destruction, necrosis, and inflammatory cell infiltration. This report characterizes the first documented case of spirocercosis in a Pallas’s cat in the world.