Abstract
Cysticercus fasciolaris is the larval stage of Taenia taeniaeformis, a parasite that predominantly affects felines. It, however, has zoonotic significance since humans can be accidental hosts. Rodents and lagomorphs act as Intermediate hosts in this parasite’s life cycle. The aim of this study was to determine the natural occurrence of infection with Cysticercus fasciolaris in rodents from a rural area in Yucatan, Mexico. Rodents were captured in 40 dwellings and two neighboring areas of low deciduous forest. A total of 153 individuals of seven different species were captured: 65 Rattus rattus (42.5%), 44 Mus musculus (28.8%), 22 Heteromys gaumeri (14.4%), 11 Ototylomys phyllotis (7.2%), 9 Peromyscus yucatanicus (5.9%), 1 Peromyscus leucopus (0.6%), and 1 Sigmodon hispidus (0.6%). All animals were examined for evidence of parasitic liver infection. Rattus rattus was the only species to present positive Cysticercus fasciolaris infection (18.5%, 12/65). We thus concluded that there was no evidence of a transmission cycle with wild rodent species.
Highlights
Cysticercus fasciolaris is the larval stage of the adult tapeworm Taenia taeniaeformis (Cestoda), a parasite that presents a global distribution and develops mainly in the small intestine of domestic (Felis cattus) and wild felines (e.g., Felis rufus, Felis silvestris, and Panthera pardus).[1,2] Felines get infected naturally by consuming contaminated livers from intermediate hosts.[3]
This study aimed to determine if infection with C. fasciolaris occurs naturally in synanthropic and/or wild rodents, captured in a rural environment in Yucatan, Mexico
For rodents captured in low deciduous forest areas (46, 30.1%), the most abundant species was Heteromys gaumeri (22/46, 47.8%), followed by Ototylomys phyllotis (11/46, 23.9%), P. yucatanicus (8/46, 17.4%), R. rattus (2/46, 4.3%), Peromyscus leucopus (1/46, 2.2%), Sigmodon hispidus (1/46, 2.2%), and M. musculus (1/46, 2.2%)
Summary
Cysticercus fasciolaris is the larval stage of the adult tapeworm Taenia taeniaeformis (Cestoda), a parasite that presents a global distribution and develops mainly in the small intestine of domestic (Felis cattus) and wild felines (e.g., Felis rufus, Felis silvestris, and Panthera pardus).[1,2] Felines get infected naturally by consuming contaminated livers from intermediate hosts.[3] infection has been identified in domestic (Canis lupus familiaris) and wild canines, such as red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), and coyotes (Canis latrans).[4,5] Laboratory animals that have been experimentally infected with C. fasciolaris have a prepatent period of 34-80 days (41.1 ± 5.9), at the end of which the ingested larvae has developed and become fully infectious.[6] An adult T. taeniaeformis tapeworm produces close to 12,000 partially developed eggs (called oncospheres) daily, which are released from the proglottids of the parasite, and shed into the environment with infected host feces.[7] Intermediate hosts of T. taeniaeformis are mainly small rodents and lagomorphs, which can become infected by consuming food or water contaminated with viable oncospheres.[8] Under experimental conditions, one-month old white mice can get infected with low numbers of eggs (200-500), and develop 11-250 metacestodes in the liver.[9,10]
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