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The influence of breed on the susceptibility of sheep of Haemonchus contortus infection in Kenya.

The relative resistance of six breeds of sheep to Haemonchus contortus infection was investigated under field conditions on two stations situated in a semi-arid zone in Kenya. As judged by faecal egg counts, monitored throughout a two-year period, it was found that there were consistent differences between the breeds. The breeds studied in order of increasing susceptibility were Red Masai, Blackhead Persian, Merino, Dorper, Corriedale and Hampshire. Post mortem findings confirmed that the differences in faecal egg count were related to the establishment of worms rather than larval inhibition or the suppression of worm egg production. There was also evidence that the Red Masai showed self-cure more frequently than the other breeds.

Animals↗

The influence of haemoglobin phenotype on the susceptibility of sheep to Haemonchus contortus infection in Kenya.

Two flocks of Merino sheep were set-stocked on pastures known to be endemic for Haemonchus contortus. Both flocks included sheep with the three common haemoglobin types (HbAA, HbAB, HbBB). The results of regular monitoring over a two-year period showed a clear relationship between haemoglobin types and susceptibility to haemonchosis. The HbAA sheep experienced fewer deaths, had consistently lower egg counts and exhibited a more frequency and effective self-cure than the HbAB or the HbBB types. Post mortem findings demonstrated that this phenomenon was due to differences in the establishment of adult H contortus and not to suppression of egg laying capacity or an alteration of male to female adult worm ratio.

Animals↗

Hypergastrinaemia of sheep infected with Haemonchus contortus.

Radioimmunoassay of plasma gastrin has shown that a hypergastrinaemia occurs in yearling sheep, after infection with 10(6) infective third stage larvae of Haemonchus contortus. Plasma gastrin concentrations began to rise two to four days after infection, that is, at about the same time as, or slightly before, the abomasal pH was observed to increase.

Abomasum↗

Immune exclusion of Haemonchus contortus larvae in sheep: dose dependency, steroid sensitivity and persistence of the response.

Naive and immune sheep, treated with anthelmintic, challenged directly into the abomasum and killed 48 hours later were used to examine the steroid sensitivity, persistence and dose dependency of immune mechanisms which result in the failure of incoming Haemonchus contortus larvae to establish (immune exclusion). Immune exclusion was almost totally abolished by corticosteroid treatment, the mean percentage of larvae establishing in the mucosa of immune sheep was 1.4 per cent of the challenge infection whereas in those treated with dexamethasone it was 24.4 per cent and in naive sheep 27.3 per cent. Immune animals challenged after seven and 42 days without antigenic experience excluded more than 90 per cent of the challenge larvae from their mucosae, whereas those challenged after 84 days without antigenic experience were as susceptible as naive animals. Immune exclusion was dose dependent, animals challenged with 10(6) and 10(5) larvae excluded 93 per cent and 82.5 per cent of the challenge dose whereas those challenged with 10(4) larvae failed to exclude larvae.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗

Changes in the response of Haemonchus contortus eggs to the ovicidal activity of thiabendazole during the course of infection.

Hatching rates and susceptibility to thiabendazole were studied on Haemonchus contortus eggs collected after either a single, a challenge or a trickle infection of sheep with a non-resistant strain. Considerable changes were observed both in hatching rates and LC50 values for thiabendazole during the course of infection. Peaks in LC50 suggested that a susceptible strain can produce eggs at least tolerant and perhaps slightly resistant at some days pi even without any previous contact with anthelmintic. The peak obtained after a single infection was more transient than in the other cases thus suggesting that the immune response of the host may facilitate the selection of tolerant or resistant sub-populations of worms or of eggs. The inheritance of this feature was not clearly demonstrated. Nevertheless, the LC50 of a selected sub-population collected from an immune lamb and given to another lamb was higher and more constant than that of the original strain.

Animals↗

Pathologic changes in lambs with Ostertagia circumcincta infections associated with decreased infectivity of Haemonchus contortus.

Two experiments were done to examine the severity and type of abomasal lesions induced by moderate infections of Ostertagia circumcincta in young lambs and to examine the differences in pathologic changes in lambs with monospecific and combined infections of O circumcincta and Haemonchus contortus. Observations included descriptions of gross and microscopic changes in the abomasums, as well as quantitative analysis of the thickness of the mucosa, numbers of mucus-containing cells, and inflammatory cell accumulations. Seemingly, the changes in the abomasal mucosa of lambs inoculated with O circumcincta were mild and included dilated glands, focal accumulations of lymphocytes, and significant (P less than 0.05) numerical increases of mucus-containing cells, eosinophils, and globule leukocytes, and increase of mucosal thickness when compared with those in noninoculated controls. These differences were less pronounced in lambs given anthelmintic treatment to remove O circumcincta. When H contortus infections were superimposed upon O circumcincta infection, the changes were essentially the same as those described for O circumcincta plus a small, but significant (P less than 0.05), numerical increase of globule leukocytes. Abomasal mucosa of lambs inoculated only with H contortus was more roughened and hyperemic than that of lambs with combined infections, but contained few dilated glands and globule leukocytes. Our conclusions were that moderate infection with O circumcincta did not cause severe or permanent damage to the abomasal mucosa and that such infection decreased the severity of the gross lesions produced by H contortus.

Abomasum↗

Haemonchus contortus and Ostertagia circumcincta: fenbendazole treatment and abomasal permeability changes in sheep.

Effects of fenbendazole (7.5 mg/kg of body weight infused during 90 minutes) on abomasal transmural potential difference (PD), pH, and ionic concentrations were determined in 8 lambs fitted with permanent abomasal cannulae. Four sheep were treated before inoculation and on day 28 after inoculation, with 200,000 3rd-stage Ostertagia circumcincta larvae and 4 others were similarly inoculated with 15,000 3rd-stage Haemonchus contortus larvae. In worm-free lambs, the unique effect was an increase in Na+ concentration of the abomasal contents. The O circumcincta or H contortus-inoculated lambs had an increase in PD, pH, and Na+ concentrations. Treatment further increased these concentrations, but the effects on PD occurred and ceased earlier in sheep inoculated with O circumcincta than in those inoculated with H contortus. The results indicated that part of the changes were linked to substances produced by the parasites or by the host. The increase in PD and pH was associated with a decrease in K+ concentration and indicated that these substances stimulated HCO3- transfer.

Abomasum↗

Enhancement of resistance of lambs to Haemonchus contortus by previous infection with Ostertagia circumcincta.

Two experiments were performed to determine whether previous infection of young lambs with Ostertagia circumcincta increased their resistance to the development of Haemonchus contortus and to explore alterations in the microenvironment of the abomasum related to the interaction. The parasitic infections were monitored with periodic fecal egg counts and by recovery and enumeration of parasites at necropsy of the lambs. Alteration of the microenvironment was examined by measurement of serum gastrin concentrations at critical times during both experiments. The results indicated that the numbers of H contortus were significantly (P less than 0.05) less in lambs which had O circumcincta infections before their exposure to H contortus. There was less reduction in lambs from which O circumcincta was removed (anthelmintic therapy) before their exposure to H contortus. Fecal egg counts also were significantly (P less than 0.05) less in the former group of lambs (exposed to both parasites) than those in lambs exposed only to H contortus. Serum gastrin values were significantly (P less than 0.05) increased in lambs infected with O circumcincta and indicated that the interaction observed could be due, in part, to alteration of abomasal pH.

Animals↗

[Efficacy of mebendazole in sheep experimentally invaded with larvae of Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus colubriformis in relation to the results of clinical examination].

A group of six lambs at the age of two months and of the average weight of 13 kg were invaded with the larvae Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus colubriformis; the course of invasion was compared with that in a group of four control lambs. In regular ten-day intervals, some hematological indices, proteinemia. SGOT and SGPT activities, glucose level, sodium and potassium were studied in blood samples; at the same time egg elimination was observed in excrement samples. The invasion intensity was checked by helminthological dissection of an experimentally invaded lamb 35th day p.i.; 576 H. contortus adults and 398 T. colubriformis adults were determined. Egg number recalculated per 1 g excrements (E.P.G.) amounted to 3072. At that stage, both groups were administered mebendazole at a dose of 10 mg active substance per 1 kg live weight on three successive days. The efficacy of the treatment (IE) was 97.01 to 98.05%. According to the clinical examination the hematocrit level dropped statistically significantly on the ninth day p.i., the other indices under study showed no changes. The drug administration increased temporarily the erythrocyte count and decreased MCV and MCH. Although mebendazole mainly inhibited glucose metabolism in the nematodes, the drug administration did not influence the glucose level of the host's blood serum.

Animals↗

The effect of route of administration on the anthelmintic efficacy of benzimidazole anthelmintics in sheep infected with strains of Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus colubriformis resistant or susceptible to thiabendazole.

Observations of erratic anthelmintic activity of fenbendazole against known standardised thiabendazole-resistant strains of Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus colubriformis in sheep were investigated. Fenbendazole at a dose rate of 10 mg/kg body weight was administered by oral, intra-ruminal or intra-abomasal routes, and was most effective against both resistant strains following intra-ruminal administration. In addition thiabendazole, oxibendazole, fenbendazole, parbendazole and mebendazole plus two unrelated compounds, levamisole and morantel tartrate, were used at one and a half times their suggested or recommended therapeutic dose rate against thiabendazole-resistant strains of H contortus and T colubriformis in sheep; each drug being administered by the intra-ruminal or intra-abomasal routes. Fenbendazole was more effective against both strains following intra-ruminal administration. Parbendazole was more effective against the resistant strain of T colubriformis following intra-ruminal administration. At the dose rate chosen for the other benzimidazoles used against these resistant strains, there was no difference in anthelmintic efficacy due to route of administration. Levamisole was highly effective against both resistant strains, irrespective of the route of administration. In the groups treated with morantel tartrate, the results obtained were difficult to interpret due to mortalities and a highly variable response in the surviving sheep. Fenbendazole, thiabendazole and mebendazole when used at their suggested or recommended therapeutic dose rate in sheep, were highly effective against known thiabendazole-susceptible strains of H contortus and T colubriformis following both intra-ruminal or intra-abomasal administration.

Abomasum↗

Resistance to Haemonchus contortus transferred between genetically histocompatible sheep by immune lymphocytes.

The pattern of faecal egg counts after infection with 10,000 Haemonchus contortus larvae was similar within but not between, four pairs of monozygous twin sheep. Transfer of whole lymph or washed lymph cells from three immune donor sheep to their identical co-twin recipients reduced the susceptibility of the recipients to challenge with 10,000 larvae as measured by faecal egg counts. Cells from a nonimmune donor did not have this effect. In a final experiment, washed cells from an immune triplet sheep, which was actively responding to a repeated challenge infection, transferred a secondary local IgA response to a second recipient triplet and resulted in a marked reduction in worm count when compared with that of a third infectivity control triplet.

Animals↗

Erythrocyte potassium concentration: a simple parameter for erythropoiesis in sheep infected with Haemonchus contortus.

A number of haematological parameters were monitored in eight-month-old Merino wethers, six infected with 10,000 Haemonchus contortus and 13 controls. Blood loss caused by infection was reflected in a decrease in packed cell volume (r = -0.78; P less than 0.001), and was correlated with faecal egg excretion (r = 0.89; P less than 0.001). Infected animals showed a decline of serum iron content and increased serum transferrin levels. Erythrocyte potassium concentration showed a high correlation with erythropoiesis as measured by iron59 clearance from blood (r = 0.79; P less than 0.001). As potassium assays are quick, inexpensive and samples can be stored for long periods, this parameter seems particularly useful in large experiments.

Animals↗

Immune exclusion, a mechanism of protection against the ovine nematode Haemonchus contortus.

The fate of exsheathed Haemonchus contortus larvae injected directly into the abomasal lumen was studied in groups of naive and hyperimmune sheep. Within 48 hours of challenge, more than 90 per cent of the larvae were lost from hyperimmune sheep. The larvae had a propensity to associate with the superficial mucus in both groups and, in naive sheep, approximately 50 per cent of the larvae entered glandular tissue within four hours of challenge. By contrast, although initially associated with the mucosal surface, larvae in immune sheep were excluded from the glandular tissues. It is postulated that the rapid loss of worms from the hyperimmune abomasum is a consequence of 'immune exclusion' and the possible mechanisms underlying this process are discussed.

Abomasum↗

Interaction of dichlorvos-crotoxyphos insecticide with phenothiazine anthelmintic in sheep with or without Haemonchus and Trichostrongylus infections.

The temporal interaction of an emulsifiable mixture of 2.3% dichlorvos and 10% crotoxyphos with phenothiazine anthelmintic was studied in 8 groups of 5 lambs each, free from or parasitized with Haemonchus and Trichostrongylus spp. Each lamb in 1 of 3 parasitized groups and 1 of 3 nonparasitized groups was treated with phenothiazine orally (12.5 g initially and 4 days later with 6.25 g every 3 days for 9 treatments) and/or the mixture of dichlorvos and crotoxyphos dermally (1,550 ml of 0.25% emulsion sprayed every 2 weeks for 3 applications). Two groups served as controls. Onset of clinical signs of toxicosis, lethality, and erythrocyte acetylcholinesterase (EACE) activity were monitored. After each dichlorvos-crotoxyphos mixture spray, clinical signs of toxicosis were seen within 40 minutes in parasitized and nonparasitized lambs regardless of concurrent phenothiazine treatment. Phenothiazine alone was not toxic and did not inhibit EACE activity. The EACE activities of dichlorvos-crotoxyphos mixture-sprayed lambs were significantly (P less than 0.05) depressed regardless of parasitism or concurrent phenothiazine treatments. The severity of inhibition increased with each dichlorvos-crotoxyphos mixture spray, but EACE activity recovered within 48 hours after each spray although base-line values were never attained. There was no apparent potentiation of the toxic effects of the dichlorvos-crotoxyphos mixture by phenothiazine.

Animals↗

Slight resistance to the residual effect of closantel in a field strain of Haemonchus contortus which showed an increased resistance after one selection in the laboratory.

On the strength of a complaint of suspected resistance to closantel, a field strain of Haemonchus contortus was isolated from sheep on a farm near Pretoria and tested for resistance to the remedy, both without exposure to closantel in the laboratory (designated the "unselected" substrain of the parasite) and after a single selection with closantel (called the "selected" substrain). For comparative purpose a few sheep were treated with rafoxanide to ascertain whether the efficacy of this drug was unchanged. While the unselected substrain appeared to show only slight increased resistance to the residual effect of closantel drenched at a dosage rate of 5 mg/kg, there was a dramatic increase in resistance after one selection. The residual efficacy (determined by the modified NPM test of Groeneveld & Reinecke, 1969, as outlined by Reinecke, 1973), 13-14 days after treatment with closantel was reduced from the registered claim of the remedy in South Africa of greater than 80% effective in greater than 80% of the treated flock to "ineffective", or less than 50% effective in less than 50% of the treated flock. Furthermore, there also appeared to be a slight increase in the resistance of this substrain to rafoxanide, as its efficacy was reduced from 99-100% to about 92%. This sharp reduction in efficacy after a single selection with closantel seemed to indicate that the slight increase in resistance of the unselected substrain was probably due not to possible variation in the repeatability of the trail method but to repeated treatment with closantel on the farm.

Animals↗

Changes in the flow and composition of gastric lymph in sheep given a primary infection of 10,000 Haemonchus contortus.

Some aspects of the local immune response to a primary infection with 10,000 Haemonchus contortus were studied in five sheep by monitoring changes in the flow and composition of gastric lymph continuously sampled for up to 34 days from the start of infection. Increases in lymph flow rates were recorded in four animals at varying times after the start of infection. These were usually associated with an increase in the protein content of the lymph and were considered to be a consequence of inflammatory reactions in the abomasum. Apart from a small increase in lymphocyte traffic no changes which could be attributed to a local immune responses were observed in the lymph. It is suggested that the chronic nature of infections like haemonchosis is possibly because the worms can parasitise the gut without stimulating a vigorous local immune response.

Albumins↗

Studies on Haemonchus contortus. VI. Attempts to stimulate immunity to abomasal trichostrongylids in Merino sheep.

Two doses of infective larvae of 20 000 Trichostrongylus axei, dosed to Merino lambs at an interval of 14 days and subsequently challenged with Ostertagia circumcincta, caused a significant reduction (P less than 0.01) in the establishment of 5th and adult stages of the latter. T. axei was unable to protect Merino sheep against homologous challenge nor was Haemonchus contortus a successful vaccine against challenge with the same species. The vaccinated group showed a reduction (P less than 0,025) only in 5th and adult H. contortus, but not in the total worm burdens.

Animals↗