Hassalstrongylus dollfusi (Nematoda, Heligmonellidae): rediscovery in native South American rodents, six decades after its description

Hassalstrongylus dollfusi (Díaz-Ungría, 1963) Durette-Desset, 1971 was described in a wild house mouse, Mus musculus, from Venezuela and, since then, has never been reported again in the type host or in any other host. In this work, specimens assignable to H. dollfusi were found at 10 localities in Northeast Argentina, in five species of sigmodontine rodents. The nematodes were attributed to H. dollfusi based on diagnostic characters such as: synlophe with 22–31 subequal ridges; in males, hypertrophy of right ray 4 of the male bursa, thickening of the dorsal ray and bases of rays 8, distal tip of the spicules bent and spoon shaped; and, in females, presence of subventral postvulvar alae supported by hypertrophied struts. The new host recorded are: Oligoryzomys fornesi, O. flavescens, O. nigripes, Holochilus chacarius and Akodon azarae. The parasite showed a strong preference for host species of Oligoryzomys, which appear to act as primary hosts. The parasite could be present, parasitizing different species of Oligoryzomys, in a geographic area from the type locality in Venezuela southward to north Corrientes in Argentina. It has not been reported from populations of Oligoryzomys spp. of the Argentinean and Brazilian Atlantic Forest, nor south of 28° S, which may be explained by constraints in the environmental conditions required by the free-living stages of the parasite. This study provides the first identification and redescription of H. dollfusi in southern South America, from autochthonous hosts, six decades after its description.

Molecular detection of Rickettsia bellii in Ixodes loricatus (Acari: Ixodidae) ticks associated with rodents from Buenos Aires province, Argentina

The aim of this study was the detection of Rickettsia in ticks of sigmodontine rodents from Northeastern Buenos Aires province, Argentina. A total of 222 rodents were captured collecting 10 ticks identified as Ixodes loricatus Neumann, which were analysed by the real-time PCR and conventional PCR techniques. DNA of Rickettsia bellii was detected in nymphs obtained from the rodents Akodon azarae Fischer, Oxymycterus rufus Fischer and Deltamys kempi Thomas. This is the first report of R. bellii infecting I. loricatus in Argentina and the first report of this bacterium associated with ticks of sigmodontine rodents

Helminth community from Azara's grass mouse (Akodon azarae) in three habitats with different land use in farming systems of Argentina

In the Pampa region of Argentina, farming activities have been performed since the beginning of the 20th century, but in the 1990s, land-use patterns rapidly changed towards intensive agriculture and poultry breeding. This study compares the helminth community ofAkodon azarae(Rodentia) among three habitats with different land use in pampean agroecosystems: poultry farms, mono-cultivated fields and abandoned fields (not used for 35 years), under the prediction that there will be greater helminth richness and diversity in mice from abandoned fields compared to those from the other habitats. Nevertheless, the highest abundance ofA. azaraeoccurred on poultry farms, the habitat most disturbed by human activity, while cultivated fields showed the lowest. Helminth richness and diversity were significantly higher on poultry farms than in the other habitats, due to the presence ofTrichuris laevitestis,Protospirura numidica criceticolaand cysts ofTaenia taeniaeformis. We suggest that the helminth fauna ofA. azaraecan survive on poultry farms despite disturbance from farming activities, because rodents can move and get shelter within farm perimeter fences, where dense and high vegetation grows. This farm area could offer good conditions for geohelminth development, while chicken sheds could attract insects that are intermediate hosts of helminths with indirect life cycles. On the contrary, agrochemicals applied in cultivated fields would negatively influence helminth diversity and composition, by decreasing host populations (arthropods and rodents) and affecting free larval stages of geohelminths.

Ixodes spp. (Acari: Ixodidae) ticks in Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil

Among the 251 described species of ticks from the genus Ixodes, only eight were previously reported in Brazil, Ixodes amarali, Ixodes aragaoi, Ixodes auritulus, Ixodes fuscipes, Ixodes loricatus, Ixodes luciae, Ixodes paranaensis and Ixodes schulzei. Of those species, I. loricatus is considered commonly found, whereas I. auritulus and I. aragaoi were registered just one time in Rio Grande do Sul (RS) state, Southern Brazil. This paper aims to update the Ixodes species occurring in RS through the investigation of the ixodofauna of small rodents. Data from 314 wild rodents were analyzed from nine municipalities of Pampa biome and five from the Atlantic Rainforest in RS. Rodents belonging to the following species were infested by Ixodes spp. ticks: Akodon azarae, Akodon montensis, Akodon paranaensis, Akodon reigi, Calomys laucha, Delomys dorsalis, Deltamys kempi, Holochilus brasiliensis, Oligoryzomys flavescens, Oligoryzomys nigripes, Oxymycterus nasutus, Scapteromys tumidus (Cricetidae) and Cavia aperea (Caviidae). The tick identification was performed based on morphological dichotomous keys, their updates and by molecular techniques. Considering the ticks from the rodents and those collected directly from the environment, 34 specimens of Ixodes spp. were collected. Our results improved to five the list of Ixodes species that occur in RS: I. loricatus, I. auritulus, I. aragaoi, I. fuscipes and I. longiscutatus. Moreover, the finding of I. longiscutatus increases to nine the number of Ixodes species in Brazil. The occurrence of two species of the Ixodes ricinus complex (I. aragaoi and I. fuscipes) highlights the potential impact of Ixodes spp. ticks on public health.