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At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

The influence of stream geology on the distribution of the bilharzia host snails, Biomphalaria pfeifferi and Bulinus (physopsis) sp.

The Gladdespruit and Komati River surveys have shown that similar environmental conditions have developed where the watercourses flowed over particular rock types. In these watercourses a potentially useful association was found between the occurrence of permanent, lentic habitats produced by the weathering of bedrock with a hardness above 5 in Mohs' Scale of Hardness and the longitudinal distribution of persistent populations of the bilharzia intermediate host snails Biomphalaria pfeifferi and Bulinus (Physopsis) sp. Bilharzia transmission follows this pattern in these waterways. Weathering of bedrock with hardness below 5 in Mohs' scale, and/or flow over beds of alluvial sand, produced perpetually lotic (flowing) environments without persistent host snail populations because of the snail's inability to tolerate high current speeds. However a few temporary populations survived in temporarily lentic habitats during the dry winter season.

Africa↗
PubMed2000

Microsatellite size homoplasy, SSCP, and population structure: a case study in the freshwater snail Bulinus truncatus.

The extent of microsatellite size homoplasy, as well as its effect on several population genetics statistics, was investigated in natural populations using the single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) method. The analysis was conducted using 240 individuals from 13 populations of the freshwater snail Bulinus truncatus at a GT(n)CT(m) compound microsatellite locus. We showed that SSCP can be used to uncover, at least partly, size homoplasy in the core sequence of this category of loci. Eight conformers (SSCP variants) were detected among the three size variants (electromorphs). Sequencing revealed that each conformer corresponded to a different combination of repeats in the GT(n) and CT(m) arrays. Part of this additional variability was detected within populations, resulting in a substantial increase in gene diversity in four populations. Additional variability also changed the values of parameters used to analyze population differentiation among populations: pairwise tests of differentiation were significant much more often with conformers than with electromorphs. On the other hand, pairwise estimates of F(st) were either smaller or larger with conformers than with electromorphs, depending on whether or not electromorphs were shared among populations. However, estimates of F(st) (or analogs) over all populations were very similar, ranging between 0.66 and 0.75. Our results were consistent with the theoretical prediction that homoplasy should not always lead to stronger population structure. Finally, conformer sequences and electromorph size distribution suggested that single-point and/or stepwise mutations occurring simultaneously in the different repeated arrays of compound microsatellites produce sequence variation without size variation and hence generate more size homoplasy than expected under a simple stepwise mutation model.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Quantitative genetics of sexual plasticity: the environmental threshold model and genotype-by-environment interaction for phallus development in the snail Bulinus truncatus.

Sexual polymorphisms are model systems for analyzing the evolution of reproductive strategies. However, their plasticity and other binary traits have rarely been studied, with respect to environmental variables. A possible reason is that, although threshold models offer an adequate quantitative genetics framework for binary traits in a single environment, analyzing their plasticity requires more refined empirical and theoretical approaches. The statistical framework proposed here, based on the environmental threshold model (ETM), should partially fill this gap. This methodology is applied to an empirical dataset on a plastic sexual polymorphism, aphally, in the snail Bulinus truncatus. Aphally is characterized by the co-occurrence of regular hermaphrodites (euphallics) together with hermaphrodites deprived of the male copulatory organ (aphallics). Reaction norms were determined for 40 inbred lines, distributed at three temperatures, in a first experiment. A second experiment allowed us to rule out maternal effects. We confirmed the existence of high broad-sense heritabilities as well as a positive effect of high temperatures on aphally. However a significant genotype-by-environment interaction was detected for the first time, suggesting that sexual plasticity itself can respond to selection. A nested series of four ETM-like models was developed for estimating genetical effects on both mean aphally rate and plasticity. These models were tested using a maximum-likelihood procedure and fitted to aphally data. Although no perfect fit of models to data was observed, the refined versions of ETM models conveniently reduce the analysis of complex reaction norms of binary traits into standard quantitative genetics parameters, such as genetic values and environmental variances.

Animals↗
PubMed1965

The species of the genus Bulinus, intermediate hosts of Schistosoma.

The conditions of snail life in African inland waters favour the evolution of microgeographical races while hindering the formation of new species, and the distinctions between many of the bulinid intermediate hosts of Schistosoma are consequently blurred. In this paper the author comments on the distinguishing characters that have been established for the known Bulinus species and subspecies and summarizes the present knowledge of their distribution and importance as intermediate hosts. His work is based on the examination of over 1540 snail samples received at the WHO Snail Identification Centre in Charlottenlund, Denmark.

Animals↗
PubMed1966

Host-parasite relationship of Bulinus truncatus and Schistosoma haematobium in Iran. 1. Effect of the age of B. truncatus on the development of S. haematobium.

This paper is the first of a series of four on various aspects of the interaction between Bulinus truncatus and the bilharziasis parasite Schistosoma haematobium. It describes laboratory studies conducted to determine the effect of the age of B. truncatus on the development of S. haematobium. The results indicated (1) that the young snails could be infected even if they were one day old; (2) that the infection rates were higher in the snails of two to five weeks of age than in those of one week; (3) that the cercarial-incubation period was shorter in the young snails than in the older ones; (4) that the survival rate of the snails in the cercarial-incubation period was lower in the young snails than in the older ones; (5) that the survival rate of the cercaria-shedding snails was also apparently lower in the young ones than in the older ones; (6) that the maximum life-span for a cercaria-positive snail extended to 329 days after the date of exposure to infection.

Aging↗
PubMed1966

Host-parasite relationship of Bulinus truncatus and Schistosoma haematobium in Iran. 2. Effect of exposure dosage of miracidia on the biology of the snail host and the development of the parasites.

Laboratory experiments were carried out to study the development of Bulinus truncatus and the larval stages of Schistosoma haematobium after the snails had been exposed to various numbers of miracidia. The results showed: (1) that in the cercarial-incubation period the growth and survival rate of snails was not influenced by the development of the larval stages of S. haematobium, but that in the cercaria-shedding period the life-span of the infected snails was shorter than that of the non-infected controls; (2) that reduction of oviposition was proportional to the exposure of miracidia; (3) that the length of the cercarial-incubation period in snails was inversely proportional to the exposure number of miracidia; (4) that all the snails exposed to 20 miracidia (the maximum exposure number used) shed cercariae; (5) that snails exposed to one miracidium each shed fewer cercariae than those exposed to two or more miracidia each; and (6) that the peak of cercaria-shedding occurred 40 to 90 days after the shedding had started, varying in different groups.

Animals↗
PubMed1966

Host-parasite relationship of Bulinus truncatus and Schistosoma haematobium in Iran. 4. Effect of month of infection on cercarial-incubation periods of S. haematobium and S. bovis.

Studies were conducted each month for one year to determine the cercarial-incubation periods of Schistosoma haematobium and Schistosoma bovis in Bulinus truncatus for different months of infection. The snails were kept in outdoor aquaria in order to simulate the natural temperature conditions in the endemic bilharziasis areas of Iran.The results showed that the cercarial-incubation periods of these two schistosome species varied with the environmental water temperature. Snails exposed in August had the shortest incubation period, and snails exposed in November the longest. The cercarial-incubation period for S. haematobium was longer than that for S. bovis in all months. The difference between the cercarial-incubation period of these two species varied from three to 18 days, being greater in the winter than in the summer.It has been concluded that the low temperature of the water in the winter retards the development of miracidia into cercariae and that the winter is therefore the poorest season for potential transmission. In summer, in spite of the hot weather, snails may still shed cercariae, but spring and autumn are the optimum seasons for cercariae transmission.

Animals↗
PubMed1966

The ecology of Bulinus truncatus and Biomphalaria alexandrina and its implications for the control of bilharziasis in the Egypt-49 project area.

The respective vectors of the two forms of bilharziasis in Egypt do not have the same ecological distribution. Bulinus truncatus is most abundant in large canals, and decreases in density as the water approaches and flows into drains. Biomphalaria alexandrina is most abundant in drains, and decreases in density upstream from these habitats. Both species are most abundant in the presence of aquatic vegetation, but they differ in their respective associations with the water hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes. Biomph. alexandrina reaches maximum abundance in the presence of this plant, but Bul. truncatus is as uncommon in the absence of plants as in the presence of E. crassipes.Calculation of life-table parameters from field data shows that, under optimum field conditions, both species can double their populations in 14-16 days. The reproductive rates of both species are greatest in March and the death rates in midsummer. The observed peak densities in May and June give a false impression of optima because of undercollection of young snails, which are most abundant in March and April.Control operations should take advantage of the findings on population parameters. A single area-wide treatment with molluscicide in April is recommended. During the remainder of the year, search for isolated foci of snail breeding and individual treatment of these will effect large savings of chemical and will be effective in controlling the transmission of the parasites.

Animals↗
PubMed1966

Electrophoretic studies on planorbid egg-proteins. The Bulinus africanus and B. forskalii species groups.

It is possible that physiological differences between populations of an intermediate snail host of schistosomes may be linked with differences in the pathogenicity of the parasite strains they harbour. With a view to differentiating between local populations of bulinid snails, a previous electrophoretic study of snail egg-proteins has been extended to cover all the recognized species of the Bulinus africanus group and most of those of the B. forskalii group.The results show that in general the level of variation between populations of the same morphological species is greater than the differences between species in the same group. However, at the specific level there are similarities suggesting close affinities between B. nasutus and B. abyssinicus, and the electrophoretic pattern for B. jousseaumei shows close relationships with West African populations of B. globosus. In the B. forskalii group the patterns for various populations of B. reticulatus differ from each other and from those of other members of the group.

Animals↗
PubMed1968

Distribution and ecology of Bulinus truncatus in Khuzestan, Iran.

The results of a 5-year study on the distribution and ecology of Bulinus truncatus in Khuzestan, south-western Iran, are described. Live snails were found in 4 foci, namely, the main focus, the upper Karun River, the lower Karkheh River, and the Bala Rud watershed; in addition, dead snails were found in 3 other foci. The patchy distribution of snails was related to the presence of surface waters and to their chemical composition.Monthly observations on the population dynamics of the snails and on the role of the snails in the transmission of Schistosoma haematobium and S. bovis were carried out in 14 ponds, 9 canals, 5 swamps, 2 field drains, 1 spring and 1 stream-pool. In standing waters, the peak of snail population could potentially occur in 2 seasons-May-July and November-January-but the main seasons for the transmission of mammalian schistosome cercariae were April-May and October-November. In flowing waters, a higher number of snails might be found in summer in some canals and in winter in another group of canals. Canals were found to be more important sites of transmission of human schistosomes than were village ponds. Transmission took place mainly in hot months when man-water contacts were greatest. Village ponds accessible to livestock were found to be important in the transmission of bovine schistosomiasis. As new irrigation systems have been expanding in this area of Khuzestan, more attention should be paid to flowing waters than to standing waters in future schistosomiasis control programmes.

Climate↗
PubMed1979

Further studies on the compatibility between s. intercalatum from cameroun and zaïre and species of bulinus.

The results from the infection experiments with Schistosoma intercalatum from Cameroun and from Zaïre and the intermediate hosts, belonging to B. forskalii and B. globosus, could be divided into groups according to the degree of compatibility with the schistosomes. This was indicated by the total cercariae production per 100 exposed snails (TCP/100 exp. snails). B. forskalii from Kinshasa, Zaïre were the snails which were most compatible with S. intercalatum from Cameroun, and B. globosus populations tested were refractory. The TCP/100 exposed snails was about 300,000 for the populations of B. forskalii from Kinshasa compared with the low production for B. forskalii from Cameroun of 125,000. B. wrighti from South Arabia produced 155,000 cercariae per 100 exposed snails. B. cernicus from Mauritius could be separated into two types according to the compatibility with S. intercalatum from Cameroun, the TCP/100 exposed snails was 31,000 and 267,000, respectively. B. globosus from Kinshasa, Zaïre, was very compatible with S. intercalatum from Zaïre and the TCP/100 exposed snails was very high, and 300,000. An albino strain of B. globosus from Rhodesia was the most compatible snail having a TCP/100 exposed snails of 2.4 million cercariae. Other strains of B. globosus from Cameroun and Togo were refractory and less susceptible. It was also possible to infect B. africanus and the two tested populations from Kenya and Tanzania, producing 15,000 and 179,000 cercariae per 100 exposed snails, respectively.

Africa↗
PubMed1990

The granulocyte response of Bulinus africanus to infection with compatible and non-compatible trematode parasites.

The granulocyte response of B. africanus was investigated after infection with either a compatible or a non-compatible trematode parasite. In both experiments a decrease in the granulocyte numbers was observed 7 days post-infection. This was maintained for 20 days. An observation made after 42 days showed that the numbers had recovered to normal. The granulocyte numbers of snails previously infected with S. mansoni (non-compatible) also showed a decrease 7 days after a reinfection. In this case, however, recovery of the numbers was apparent 14 days later. No sporocyst material was present in the head-foot areas of the snail 12 h post-penetration, indicating that they were already destroyed by the snails defence system.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Genetic structure and parasite compatibility of Bulinus globosus (Gastropoda: Planorbidae) from two areas of different endemicity of Schistosoma haematobium in Zimbabwe.

A comparative study of the genetic structure of 8 populations of B.globosus from 2 areas of different endemicity of Schistosoma haematobium was done. Five populations were from Chiweshe (high endemicity) and three were from Plumtree (low endemicity). Genetic structure, as determined by allozyme genetics, revealed high levels of genetic variability in Chiweshe populations (Ho = 0.12-0.26) and low levels in Plumtree (Ho = 0.06-0.12). Populations from Chiweshe were genetically heterogeneous whereas in Plumtree the populations were uniform. There were significant deviations from Hardy-Weinberg proportions at different loci in Chiweshe populations. The observed excess of homozygotes was probably caused by partial selfing. The compatibility studies showed variation between allopatric and sympatric combinations of snails and parasites, and the Plumtree parasite had a significant influence on the compatibility parameters. This strain had a positive correlation (P < 0.01) of its infection rate with allele frequency of Est-2(100) and a negative correlation (P < 0.05) with allele Idh100.

Animals↗