The threatening but unpredictable Sarcoptes scabiei: first deadly outbreak in the Himalayan lynx, Lynx lynx isabellinus, from Pakistan

Although neglected, the mite Sarcoptes scabiei is an unpredictable emerging parasite, threatening human and animal health globally. In this paper we report the first fatal outbreak of sarcoptic mange in the endangered Himalayan lynx (Lynx lynx isabellinus) from Pakistan. A 10-year-old male Himalayan lynx was found in a miserable condition with severe crusted lesions in Chitral District, and immediately died. Post-mortem examination determined high S. scabiei density (1309 mites/cm2 skin). It is most probably a genuine emergence, resulting from a new incidence due to the host-taxon derived or prey-to-predator cross-infestation hypotheses, and less probable to be apparent emergence resulting from increased infection in the Himalayan lynx population. This is an alarming situation for the conservation of this already threatened population, which demands surveillance for early detection and eventually rescue and treatment of the affected Himalayan lynxPeer reviewe

A practical guideline to remote biopsy darting of wildebeests for genetic sampling

The use of biopsy darts for remote collection of tissue samples from free-ranging terrestrial and aquatic animal species has gained popularity in the recent past. The success of darting is very important since scientists may not have many chances to re-dart the same animal, especially with the free-ranging elusive wildlife species. We used wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) as a model to estimate the optimum shooting distance, pressure and the shot part of the body through which a researcher can optimize the success and amount of tissue collected from similar wild land mammalian species. Wildebeests were darted at six categories of distances ranging between 10 and 45 m and dart gun pressures of 5–14 millibar. The number of failed darts increased by increasing the darting distance: 0% (10 m), 0% (20 m), 6% (30 m), 20% (35 m), 71% (40 m), and 67% (45 m). There was a notable effect of the distances on the amount of tissue collected 20 m offered the best results. Dart gun pressure had no effect on the amount of tissue samples obtained. The amount of tissue obtained from successful darts was the same whether the animal was darted on the shoulder or thigh. In this paper, we present a practical guideline for remote biopsy darting of wildebeest to obtain optimum amount of tissue samples, which could be generalized for similar wild land mammalian species

Data from: Population genomics analyses of European ibex species show lower diversity and higher inbreeding in reintroduced populations

Restoration of lost species ranges to their native distribution is key for the survival of endangered species. However, reintroductions often fail and long-term genetic consequences are poorly understood. Alpine ibex (Capra ibex) are wild goats that recovered from <100 individuals to ~50,000 within a century by population reintroductions. We analyzed the population genomic consequences of the Alpine ibex reintroduction strategy. We genotyped 101'822 genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism loci in 173 Alpine ibex, the closely related Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica) and domestic goat (Capra hircus). The source population of all Alpine ibex maintained genetic diversity comparable to Iberian ibex, which experienced less severe bottlenecks. All reintroduced Alpine ibex populations had individually and combined lower levels of genetic diversity than the source population. The reintroduction strategy consisted of primary reintroductions from captive-breeding and secondary reintroductions from established populations. This step-wise reintroduction strategy left a strong genomic footprint of population differentiation, which increased with subsequent rounds of reintroductions. Furthermore, analyses of genome-wide runs of homozygosity showed recent inbreeding primarily in individuals of reintroduced populations. We showed that despite the rapid census recovery, Alpine ibex carry a persistent genomic signature of their reintroduction history. We discuss how genomic monitoring can serve as an early indicator of inbreeding

Infection dynamics of gastrointestinal helminths in sympatric non-human primates, livestock and wild ruminants in Kenya

Background Gastrointestinal parasites are neglected infections, yet they cause significant burden to animal and human health globally. To date, most studies of gastrointestinal parasites focus on host-parasite systems that involve either a single parasite or a host species. However, when hosts share habitat and resources, they may also cross-transmit generalist gastrointestinal parasites. Here we explore multi-host-parasite interactions in a single ecosystem to understand the infection patterns, especially those linked to livestock-wildlife interfaces and zoonotic risk. Methods We used both coprological methods (flotation and sedimentation; N = 1,138 fecal samples) and molecular identification techniques (rDNA and mtDNA; N = 18 larvae) to identify gastrointestinal parasites in nine sympatric host species (cattle, sheep, goats, wildebeest, Grant's gazelles, Thomson's gazelles, impala, vervet monkeys and baboons) in the Amboseli ecosystem, Kenya. Results We found that the host community harbored a diverse community of gastrointestinal helminths, including 22 species and/or morphotypes that were heterogeneously distributed across the hosts. Six zoonotic gastrointestinal helminths were identified: Trichuris spp., Trichostrongylus colubriformis, Enterobius spp. Oesophagostomum bifurcum, Strongyloides stercoralis and Strongyloides fuelleborni. The dominant parasite was Trichuris spp, whose ova occurred in two morphological types. Baboons were co-infected with Strongyloides fuelleborni and S. stercoralis. Conclusions We found that the interface zone shared by wild ungulates, livestock and non-human primates is rich in diversity of gastrointestinal helminths, of which some are extensively shared across the host species. Closely related host species were most likely to be infected by the same parasite species. Several parasites showed genetic sub-structuring according to either geography or host species. Of significance and contrary to expectation, we found that livestock had a higher parasite richness than wild bovids, which is a health risk for both conservation and livestock production. The zoonotic parasites are of public health risk, especially to pastoralist communities living in areas contiguous to wildlife areas. These results expand information on the epidemiology of these parasites and highlights potential zoonotic risk in East African savanna habitats.Peer Reviewe

Universal conventional and real-time PCR diagnosis tools for Sarcoptes scabiei

[Background] The mite Sarcoptes scabiei has a known host-range of over 100 mammal species including humans. One of the prime objectives of the Sarcoptes-World Molecular Network (WMN) is to design and develop universal Sarcoptes PCR-based diagnosis methods.[Methods] We describe here for the first time two universal mitochondrial-based diagnosis methods: (i) conventional end-point PCR and (ii) TaqMan real-time PCR. The design of both of these universal diagnosis methods was based on Sarcoptes samples collected from 23 host species in 14 countries.[Results] These methods, based on skin scrapings, were successfully used to etiologically confirm the diagnosis of different clinical degrees of sarcoptic mange in 48 animals belonging to six species. These universal PCR-based diagnosis methods are highly specific, technically sensitive and simple, and are based on the amplification of 135 bp from the Mitochondrial 16S rDNA. The method based on TaqMan real-time qPCR was more sensitive than the conventional end-point PCR.[Conclusions] Two universal PCR-based diagnosis methods for S. scabiei were successfully designed and applied; one based on conventional end-point PCR and the other on TaqMan real-time PCR. We recommend further testing and the application of these new universal methods worldwide.This study was funded by i. the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR), ii. the Project PRIN Genomics and host-pathogen interactions: a model study in the One-Health perspective, and iii. the Deanship of Scientific Research at King Saud University through the research group (project number RGP_020).Peer reviewe

Influence of massive and long distance migration on parasite epidemiology: Lessons from the great wildebeest migration

Very little is known about the influence of massive and long distance migration on parasite epidemiology. Migration can simultaneously minimize exposure to common parasites in their habitats and increase exposure to novel pathogens from new environments and habitats encountered during migration, while physiological stress during long distance movement can lead to immune suppression, which makes migrants vulnerable to parasites. In this paper, we investigated the diversity, prevalence, parasite load, co-infection patterns and predilection sites of adult gastrointestinal helminths in 130 migrating wildebeests and tested for their relation with animal age, sex and migration time (which also could indicate different migration routes), and compared them with the non-migratory wildebeest. Surprisingly, only four parasite species were found, Oesophagostomum columbianum, Haemonchus placei, Calicophoron raja and Moniezia expansa, which were lower than in non-migratory wildebeest reported in the literature. These parasites were generalists, infecting livestock, and suggests that wildebeest and livestock, because of their interaction during migration, have a cross-infection risk. There was a negative relation between parasites diversity, prevalence and intensity of infection, and host age, which suggests that wildebeests acquire protective immunity against these parasites as they get older. Prevalence and intensity of infection were higher among wildebeest crossing the Mara Bridge (early migrants) compared to those crossing the Serena (late migrants), which suggests that early migrants (or migrants originating from different areas) have varying infection intensities. The prevalence and intensity of infection were higher in males compared to females and may be due to ecological, behavioural, or physiological differences between males and females. Our findings compared to those of previous studies suggest that migration may provide a mechanism to minimize exposure of hosts to common parasites through migratory escape, but this result awaits examination of helminths epidemiology of non-migratory wildebeests from areas of migrant origins. The potential parasitic cross-infection between wildebeests and livestock is a real risk to be taken into account in the management of wildebeest migration corridors.The authors also thank KWS for funding the research, and Sophia Masila for editing the manuscript