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PubMed2005

21 years of parasitology.

Every parasitologist must have seen the first issue of Parasitology Today in July 1985. More than 13 000 copies were sent to those on society and World Health Organization mailing lists. Modelled on the hugely successful Immunology Today, the new journal aimed to provide well-written digests covering all aspects of parasitology, spiced with smaller items of general interest--including the elegant cartoons of Len Goodwin and occasional acerbic comments on style and semantics. The format seemed well appreciated, and subscriptions quickly climbed to commercially sustainable figures, reflected in the increasing willingness of the publisher, Elsevier, to finance colour printing. Within the first year, the journal went "glossy", and under its later title--Trends in Parasitology--it is now ranked highest of all similar organs, with an impact factor of 6.788. As the journal celebrates its "coming of age", I was asked--as founder Editor--to reflect on key changes during these eventful 21 years.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

How is veterinary parasitology taught in China?

Many parasites of domestic animals in China are of major socioeconomic and medical importance. Hence, veterinary parasitology is one of the core subjects for undergraduate and postgraduate students of veterinary science. Here, we review the teaching of veterinary parasitology in Chinese universities, including a description of the veterinary science curricula and measures to improve the quality of veterinary parasitology teaching in China.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Research collaboration in parasitology between Indonesia and Australia.

Indonesia and Australia are close neighbours sharing agro-ecological zones and common parasitological interests. Australia is an industrialised country and Indonesia is both industrialising and a developing country. The types of collaboration, contractual, collegiate, research collaboration and partnerships are briefly described. All forms of collaboration have and continue to exist between Australia and Indonesia. A survey of mammalian parasitology publications over the last 23 years indicates that the bulk of papers have been by Indonesian and non-Australian authors. Australian and Indonesian authors provided 4% of the total number of publications. The rational for collaboration is suggested to be the high degree of common multiple interests and the synergy of effort that can be derived from research partnerships. The most difficult issues in research collaboration are establishing the research priorities and, to a lesser extent, funding. The globalisation of the international research centre, International Livestock Research Institute, to include Asia will expand the opportunities for research collaboration. Details of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research mandate in supporting parasitology research collaboration is briefly described. The past and current research collaborative activities are reviewed and opportunities for future collaboration are listed.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

The future of veterinary parasitology.

Current evidence suggests research in veterinary parasitology is in decline despite its importance. This is particularly true in the UK where research funds have been diverted into BSE. Decline in interest in veterinary parasitology is at least in part due to the success of major pharmaceutical companies in producing a range of effective and safe anti-parasitic drugs. Research is needed because of the effects of parasites on animal welfare and the economic costs of parasites. However, there is little information on the actual costs of animal parasites. Another major reason for research is the development of drug resistance in protozoa, helminths and arthropods of veterinary importance. This is a serious problem particularly for sheep and goats in the southern hemisphere. A prioritised list of research requirements is suggested: (i) new drugs; (ii) resistance management; (iii) vaccines; (iv) breeding for resistance; (v) improved diagnostics; (vi) zoonoses; (vii) global warming and parasites. There is a major political challenge to raise the profile of veterinary parasitology and thus the funding essential for its advancement and the continued welfare and productivity of animals.

Animal Welfare↗
PubMed2002

An internationally recognized quality assurance system for diagnostic parasitology in animal health and food safety, with example data on trichinellosis.

A quality assurance (QA) system was developed for diagnostic parasitology and implemented for several diagnostic assays including fecal flotation and sedimentation assays, trichomonad culture assay, and the testing of pork and horse meat for Trichinella to facilitate consistently reliable results. The system consisted of a validated test method, procedures to confirm laboratory capability, and protocols for documentation, reporting, and monitoring. Specific system components included a quality assurance manual, training program, proficiency panels, inter-laboratory check-sample exchange program, assay critical control points, controls, and audits. The quality assurance system of the diagnostic laboratory was audited according to ISO/IEC Standard 17025 by an international third party accrediting body and accredited as a testing laboratory for the specific parasitology tests. Test results generated from the laboratory were reliable and scientifically defensible according to the defined parameters of the tests and were therefore valid for a variety of purposes, including food safety, international trade, and declaration of disease status in an animal, herd, farm, or region. The system was applicable to various test methods for the detection of parasites in feces or other samples, and a digestion test system developed for Trichinella was used as an example. A modified tissue digestion assay was developed, validated, and implemented by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's Centre for Animal Parasitology for efficiency and quality assurance. The details of the method were properly documented for routine testing and consisted of a homogenization process, an incubation at 45+/-2 degrees C, and two sequential sedimentations in separatory funnels to concentrate and clarify final aliquots for microscopic examination. To facilitate consistently reliable test results, 14 critical control points were identified and monitored, analysts were certified, and the test system verified through the use of validation data, proficiency samples, and training modules.

Animal Welfare↗
PubMed2002

Teaching of undergraduate veterinary parasitology: the South American perspective.

Undergraduate teaching of veterinary parasitology in South American countries is basically similar to most of the veterinary schools and offers lectures and practicals in parasitology (P) predominantly in the second year of the curriculum, and parasitic diseases (PD) in the third year, but in some schools also in the fourth and fifth years. However, there is a great variation in teaching hours allocated to P/PD between totals of about 50-169 h during the full curriculum. In addition to the lectures and practicals, schools are increasingly using tools (CD-ROMs) for self-instruction and new forms of education, such as workshops, round tables, and field practicals. The large number of important parasite species of large and small animals in tropical and subtropical areas would require additional hours for teaching--at least in some of the schools--considering the multidisciplinary characteristics of veterinary parasitology.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

A bibliometric analysis of research productivity in Parasitology by different world regions during a 9-year period (1995-2003).

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to estimate the research productivity of different world regions in the field of Parasitology. METHODS: Using the PubMed database we retrieved articles from journals included in the "Parasitology" category of the "Journal Citation Reports" database of the Institute for Scientific Information for the period 1995-2003. Research productivity was evaluated based on a methodology we developed and used in other bibliometric studies by analysing: (1) the total number of publications, (2) the mean impact factor of all papers, and (3) the product of the above two parameters, (4) the research productivity in relation to gross domestic product of each region, and (5) the research productivity in relation to gross national income per capita and population of each region. RESULTS: Data on the country of origin of the research was available for 18,110 out of 18,377 articles (98.6% of all articles from the included journals). Western Europe exceeds all world regions in research production for the period studied (34.8% of total articles), with USA ranking second (19.9%), and Latin America & the Caribbean ranking third (17.2%). The mean impact factor in articles published in Parasitology journals was highest for the USA (1.88). Oceania ranked first in research productivity when adjustments for both the gross national income per capita (GNIPC) and population were made. Eastern Europe almost tripled the production of articles from only 1.9% of total production in 1995 to 4.3% in 2003. Similarly, Latin America and the Caribbean and Asia doubled their production. However, the absolute and relative production by some developing areas, including Africa, is still very low, despite the fact that parasitic diseases are major public health problems in these areas. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that more help should be provided by the developed nations to developing areas for improvement of the infrastructure of research.

Africa↗
PubMed2003

Presidential address 2002. Parasitology in the 21st century.

During the past several weeks, I, like many of my predecessors, have read many speeches previously delivered at the annual meeting of the American Society of Parasitologists (ASP). These are wonderful, exciting papers, and I recommend them to you. The history of our Society and much of parasitological research and philosophy are contained in these speeches. An understanding of parasitology and specifically of the ASP in the 21st century necessitates an understanding of our roots. Just as proteomics, genomics, DNA, and Mendel are a continuum, so is our progression as a science and as a Society. This thought is not original with me. Several presidents have discussed this point in detail: Eloise Cram in 1956, "Stepping Stones in the History of the American Society of Parasitologists" (Cram, 1956); Martin Ulmer in 1978, "What's Past is Prologue" (Ulmer, 1978); Harry Hoogstraal in 1984, "ASP: Its Historic Role and Modern Opportunities" (Hoogstraal, 1985); and Mike Kemp in 1988, "Parasitology a Degenerate Discipline, Populated by Degenerate Scientists, Studying Degenerate Organisms?" (Kemp, 1989).

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Rayer's influence on parasitology (with unpublished documents)].

The important contribution of P. Rayer to parasitology (human and animal) had never been studied so far. It includes chiefly a dozen papers published in Archives de Médecine comparée (1842-43), a creation of Rayer. They deal with myxosporidia, helminths (nematodes, trematodes) and ectoparasitic insects. In the same periodical are published important parasitological contributions from germanic authors (J. Müller, G. Simon, A. de Nordmann). Three other papers from Rayer (1838, 1850) are devoted to human parasitic diseases (urinary bilharziosis, wuchereriasis) of which the exact etiology was still ignored. Two unpublished letters from G. Breschet and H. M. Edwards to Rayer dealing with the 1842-43 papers are given here. The contribution of Rayer's disciples to parasitology is then recalled: C. Davaine (the most important), Ch. Robin and J.A. Laboulbène.

France↗
PubMed2005

Disease mapping and risk assessment in veterinary parasitology: some case studies.

Disease mapping and risk assessment are important tasks in the area of medical and veterinary epidemiology. The development of methods for mapping diseases has progressed considerably in recent years. Geographical Information Systems (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS), and Spatial Analysis represent new tools for the study of epidemiology, and their application to parasitology has become more and more advanced, in particular to study the spatial and temporal patterns of diseases. The present review highlights the usefulness of GIS and RS in veterinary parasitology in order to better know the epidemiology of parasite organisms, causing either snail/arthropod borne diseases or direct transmissible diseases, mostly in small areas with a strong impact by man. It demonstrates the potential of these technologies to serve as effective tools for: data capture, mapping and analysis for the development of descriptive parasitological maps; studying the environmental features that influence the distribution of parasites; predicting parasite occurrence/seasonality based on their environmental requirements and as decision support for disease intervention; and surveillance and monitoring of animal diseases.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

[The scientific conference: Konstanty Janicki (1876-1932): Professor of Warsaw University, eminent zoologist and protistologist, creator of the Polish parasitological school].

The conference was organized for celebrating the memory of professor Konstanty Janicki, one of the most important Polish zoologist, protistologist and parasitologist. Professors Joanna Pijanowska, Edward Siński and Maria Doligalska were the hosts of the meeting at the Warsaw University. Four lectures were given during the conference. Professor Leszek Kuźnicki presented professor Janicki's life and followers who continued his research. Professor Stanisław Kazubski reminded the main topics of the parasitological studies conducted by professor Janicki. That lecture was illustrated by coloured diagrams taken from original papers published by Janicki. In the next lecture, professor Teresa Pojmańska reminded "the theory of the cercomer". She viewed some polemics and discussions made by the opponents of the theory. Professor Alicja Guttowa presented a paper on the history of the exploration of the D. latum life cycle and the main scientific researches carried out on each life stages of the broad tapeworm. Afterwards the lectures, professor Kazubski showed several pictures taken inside and outside of the Main School of the Warsaw University at the time when professor Janicki had been working there. The professor's students were also seen in these pictures. Next, associate professor Bozena Moskwa, the President of the Polish Parasitological Society presented the Konstanty Janicki Medal, awarded for outstanding activities for the benefit of parasitology. Up to data, 17 scientists and one school: the Warsaw Uniwersity was honored with this Medal. After the conference, participants visited the Powazki Cementary, where the renovated sepulchral monument of professor Konstanty Janicki was uncovered.

Congresses as Topic↗
PubMed1998

[Toxocara canis infection. Environmental parasitologic and epidemiologic studies].

UNLABELLED: Due to the large number of differential diagnostic possibilities, the etiology of endogenous uveitis is still hard to determine. One reason for uveitis may be the occurrence of parasites. However, too little attention is paid to this underlying disease. METHODS: To identify certain sources of infection, ovoscopic probes of 98 dog feces from the urban area of Halle were taken. The material was collected from children's playgrounds, parks and swimming pools. A retrospective analysis of patient case data from the records of the University Eye Hospital for the years 1986-1995 complemented the environmental and parasitological examination of patients with Toxocara canis and T. cati infections. RESULTS: From the ovoscopic examinations, 16% of the fecal samples contained T. canis eggs. Seventeen percent contained coccicidal sporocysts. Eggs of Trichuris vulpis and not clearly identifiable nematodal larvae were found in 1% of the samples. The reasons for the morphology was, in one instance, suspected Echinococcus eggs. The fact that 12 or 15 parasitologically positive dog excrement samples were taken from the immediate vicinity of children's playgrounds and another three directly from these grounds should be regarded as particularly critical. The investigated patient case data records revealed for the period studied nine uveitic patients with T. conis infection. The diagnosis was based on the larva precipitation test in all cases. After correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment, the prognosis was favorable. The specific treatment had to be repeated in two patients. CONCLUSIONS: The environmental parasitological study presented proves the relatively high prevalence of pathogenic causal agents in dog excrement samples from the area of urban recreation and leisure grounds, in particular, children's playgrounds. Parasite infestation is a mirror of the efficiency of hygienic and social measures. Public health education must be reinforced. Differential diagnosis of chronic endogenous eye diseases must pay more attention to infections by parasites.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

A comparative study on specific antibodies and circulating antigen (CAA) in serum and parasitological findings for diagnosis of schistosomiasis mansoni in an endemic area in Tanzania.

A baseline study to evaluate the prevalence of Schistosoma mansoni infection as well as the diagnostic efficacy of serodiagnostic tests was performed in Kabaganga village, Kome island, Lake Victoria, Tanzania. A total of 1108 individuals were examined parasitologically and clinically. Egg excretion was demonstrated by one-sample Kato-Katz test. Specific IgG1 and IgG4 antibodies against S. mansoni adult worm (SAWA) and egg (SEA) antigens as well as circulating anodic antigen (CAA) were determined in serum samples from 250 of these subjects. As a control population 41 individuals from a non-endemic area were examined parasitologically, clinically and serologically. In the parasitologically examined Kabaganga population 45% were excreting eggs. The pattern of egg excretion was typical for an endemic area with a peak in the age group 10-14 years. Sixty-five percent of the serologically tested villagers were positive in the CAA test. A total of 80% were positive in either of the two tests, indicating an active infection. In 67-95% of these individuals the levels of isotype specific antibodies were increased. The prevalence of CAA positivity corresponded fairly well with that of Kato-Katz results in the age groups 10-29 years, but in the younger age groups a considerably greater number of individuals were positive in the CAA test than in the Kato-Katz test. The results obtained indicate that virtually all of the Kabaganga villagers, regardless of age, had an ongoing, active infection or had previously been infected with S. mansoni. This population, therefore, may be useful for evaluation of the diagnostic efficacy of various antibody tests. The highest degree of discrimination between the endemic and the non-endemic village populations was noted for anti-egg IgG4 antibodies. It is concluded that the combined determination of parasite eggs in faeces and CAA in serum provides high sensitivity as regards active infection. Increased levels of isotype-specific antibodies, particularly of the IgG4 subclass, is a sensitive indicator of past or present infection, and the prevalence of individuals with such increased levels may be a simple and reliable indicator of the frequency of schistosomiasis in a community.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Online searching of parasitology literature.

To keep abreast of the expanding literature on parasitology is virtually a such full-time pursuit of source literature becomes impossible with other commitments, encouraging recourse to secondary sources such as abstracting journals, Current Contents, and even Parasitology Today. Another approach - increasingly used since its faltering introduction in the 1970s- involves online searching of computerized databases. Here, John Eyers and Angela Taylor review the application of such systems to parasitology.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1984

Parasitological, serological and clinical effects of continuous graded levels of Dictyocaulus viviparus inoculations in calves.

To investigate the parasitological, serological, clinical and growth effects of continuous graded levels of Dictyocaulus viviparus inoculations in calves an experiment was carried out with 10 groups of 5 calves each. Calves were inoculated twice a week during a period of ten weeks. The range of the doses was 10-2560 infective larvae (L3) per inoculation. The results were analysed by linear and curvilinear regression of various traits on infection level. It is concluded that: A continuous exposure of calves to L3 of D. viviparus was followed by a continuous larval excretion at all levels; Results of the ELISA technique gave a very good reflection of the level of infection; Clinical signs and weight loss were evident before the parasitological and serological results were positive; The serological parameter and the parasitological parameters were mainly linearly related to the level of infection. The clinical parameters were mainly cubically related to the level of infection.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Two mutations in dihydrofolate reductase combined with one in the dihydropteroate synthase gene predict sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine parasitological failure in Ugandan children with uncomplicated falciparum malaria.

The point mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum dihydrofolate reductase (dhfr) and the dihydropteroate synthase (dhps) genes that are linked to sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) resistance in vitro have been well characterised. To determine whether a few of these mutations could predict SP treatment failure in vivo, two mutations (Asn-108 and Arg-59) in the dhfr gene and one (Glu-540) in the dhps gene were analysed according to the risk of SP parasitological failure (RI-RIII) at day 28 in pre-treatment isolates in 79 Ugandan children aged 6-59 (mean = 18.4, S.D. = 8.8) months with uncomplicated falciparum malaria. Neither the dhfr-108 (P = 0.3) nor the dhps-540 (P = 0.6) or dhfr-108 + dhps-540 (P = 0.04) mutations were significantly associated with SP parasitological failure. However, the dhfr-108 + dhfr-59 (P = 0.04), the dhfr-59 + dhps-540 (P = 0.04) and the dhfr-108 + dhfr-59 + dhps-540 (P = 0.02) mutations significantly increased the risk for SP parasitological failure. Our findings confirm an earlier report that the dhfr-59 and the dhps-540 mutations could be useful genetic markers for rapid screening of populations at high risk of SP resistance.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Southeast Asian tropical medicine and parasitology network.

The SEAMEO TROPMED Network is a regional cooperative network established in 1967 for education, training and research in tropical medicine and public health under the Southeast Asia Ministers of Education Organization. The Network operates through four Regional Centers with respective areas of specialization and host institutions: Community Nutrition/Tropmed Indonesia; Microbiology, Parasitology and Entomology/Tropmed Malaysia; Public Health/Tropmed Philippines; and Tropical Medicine/Tropmed Thailand. To train health workers, to support research on endemic and newly emerging diseases, and to advocate relevant health policies are the main functions of these centers. SEAMEO TROPMED Network in collaboration with the Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University and other institutions has regularly organized the Seminar on Food-borne Parasitic Zoonoses every 3-5 years over the past 15 years. The Faculty of Tropical Medicine has organized the annual Joint International Tropical Medicine Meeting since 1996. Full papers of the presentations at these two meetings have been published as supplementary issues to the Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health, an in-house journal of SEAMEO TROPMED Network. Recently, the Parasitology Association of ASEAN Countries has rotated the hosting of the ASEAN Congress of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine. These institutional and conference networks will enable closer links, to promote the health of people in the Southeast Asian region.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Follow-up of experimental chronic Chagas' disease in dogs: use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) compared with parasitological and serological methods.

In this study, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was compared with parasitological and serological methods to detect the infection in dogs, 5-12 years after experimental infection with Trypanosoma cruzi. The ability of parasitological methods to identify a positive animal was 22 and 11% by hemoculture and xenodiagnosis/xenoculture, respectively. On the other hand, the serological tests, including conventional serology and anti-live trypomastigote antibodies (ALTA) were positive in all infected dogs. Despite its low sensitivity, if considering only one reaction, the PCR analysis showed 100% of positivity, demonstrating the presence of parasite kDNA in all infected dogs. To identify a positive dog required at least two blood samples and up to nine repeated reactions using the same sample. Serial blood sample collection, ranging from 1 to 9, revealed that the percentage of dogs with positive PCR ranged from 67 to 100%. These findings suggested that, although the PCR is useful to detect the parasite in infected hosts, it should not be used isolated for the diagnosis of Chagas' disease and warn for the necessity of serial blood collection and re-tests. Moreover, these data validate once more the dog as a model for Chagas' disease since they demonstrate the permanence of infection by PCR, parasitological and serological methods, reaching relevant requisites for an ideal model to study this disease.

Animals↗