Gnathostomiasis in a Wild-Caught Nine-Banded Armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus)

摘要

Gnathostoma belongs to one of the largest groups of roundworms, the Spirurida.The genus Gnathostoma has 10 to 12 species, 3 of which have been reported in humans: G. spinigerum, G. hispidum, and G. doloresi. The most is known about G. spinigerum, which is the cause of the greatest number of cases of gnathostomiasis reported in humans. The life cycle of G. spinigerum involves two intermediate and one final host. In addition, many paratenic hosts aid in transmission through predation. Adult worms live in the stomach wall of wild and domestic cats and dogs. Eggs, passed in the feces into water, embryonate and hatch. The larvae are eaten by Cyclops ssp. and develop into the body cavity of the crustacean. When the infected cyclops are eaten by fish, frogs, or snakes, the larvae develop in the flesh of these animals. The life cycle is completed when an appropriate definitive host ingests larvae encapsulated in muscle from any of these species (1). Gnathostoma procyonis of raccons and G. didelphis of opossums are found in the United States. Gnathostoma sp. has not previously been reported in armadillos.