Primjena poluugniježđene lančane reakcije polimerazom za dokaz larvi oblića Spirocerca lupi u vrtnog guštera (Calotes versicolor).

The study reveals the usefulness of semi-nested PCR as a tool to identify larval stages of Spirocerca lupi in garden lizards (Calotes versicolor), the paratenic host for the parasite. Creamy white cysts present in the superficial muscles of seven out of thirteen garden lizards on the veterinary college campus, Pookode, were recovered and observed for the presence of live larvae. DNA isolated from these cysts and S. lupi worms recovered during postmortem examination of an infected dog were used for semi-nested PCR for amplifying an internal region of the S. lupi Cox-I gene, producing a specific 400 bp fragment. Thus the semi-nested PCR may be utilized for specific detection of larval stages of S. lupi in a paratenic host.Istraživanje je provedeno u svrhu provjere učinkovitosti primjene poluugniježđene lančane reakcije polimerazom za identifikaciju ličinaka oblića S. lupi u vrtnog guštera (Calotes versicolor). Žućkasto bijele ciste bile su izdvojene iz površinskih mišića sedam od 13 vrtnih guštera ulovljenih na području kampusa veterinarskog koledža Pookovode i pretražene na prisutnost živih ličinaka. DNA izdvojena iz tih cista i DNA iz oblića S. lupi izdvojenih tijekom razudbe invadiranoga psa rabljene su u poluugniježđenoj lančanoj reakciji polimerazom za umnožavanje unutarnjeg područja gena Cox-I i prepoznavanje specifičnog fragmenta od 400 bp. Zaključeno je da se poluugniježđena PCR može upotrijebiti za dokaz ličinaka oblića S. lupi u parateničnih domaćina

Ixodid Tick Vectors of Wild Mammals and Reptiles of Southern India

Background: We aimed to focus on the ixodid ticks parasitizing wild mammals and reptiles from Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Western Ghat, southern India. Methods: The taxonomic identification of ticks collected from wild mammals and reptiles was performed based on the morphology of adults. Results: We revealed eight species of ticks including, Amblyomma integrum, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) annulatus, Haemaphysalis (Kaiseriana) spinigera, H. (K.) shimoga, H. (K.) bispinosa, H. (Rhipistoma) indica, Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides and R. sanguineus  s.l. collected from nine species of wild mammals while four tick species Ablyomma kraneveldi, A. pattoni, A. gervaisi and A. javanense parasitizing on four species of reptiles. The highest host rich­ness was shown by H. (K.) bispinosa and R. haemaphysaloides parasitizing six and five different host species, re­spectively.  Reports of R. (B.) annulatus on sambar deer, A. javanense and A. kraneveldi on python as well as A. pat­toni on Indian rat snake are the new host records from this region. Conclusion: Eight species of ticks parasitizing on nine species of wild mammals and four species of parasitizing on four species of reptiles were identified. The highest host richness was shown by H. (K.) bispinosa and R. haemaphy­saloides. H. spinigera as the vector of KFD was also identified in this study