Author Institution: Sanitarian, Licking and Knox Counties, Ohi

Masters, Charles Otto

The Ohio Journal of Science

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ARTHROPODS OF MEDICAL IMPORTANCE IN OHIOCHARLES O. MASTERSSanitarian, Licking and Knox Counties, OhioIt is rather difficult to state with authority that arthropods, which make upabout 86 percent of the world's animal species, are not of medical importance inthe state of Ohio. Public health workers know only too well that man is suscep-tible to many diseases, and when the causative organisms are present in an areainhabited by host animals and vectors as well as by man, troubles very oftenresult. This was demonstrated very nicely in Aurora, Ohio, in 1934 when thecausative organism of malaria was brought into that region. The other threenecessary factors were already there (Hoyt and Worden, 1935).When one considers that many centers of infection of some of the world's mostserious human illnesses are now only hours away by plane, he can't help but wonderwhat the situation is in Ohio, relative to these other necessary factors. Theopening of northern Ohio ports to foreign shipping also suggests the possibilityof the introduction of unusual organisms. This is an approach to that particularaspect.The phylum Arthropoda is divided into five classes of animals: Insecta,Crustacea, Chilopoda (centipedes), Diplopoda (millipedes), and Arachnida (spiders,scorpions, mites, and ticks). Representatives of these various groups which arefound in Ohio and which might have some medical significance will be discussed.There are nine species of mosquitoes breeding in the state of Ohio which are of medicalinterest. These are as follows: Anopheles quadrimaculatus, the vector of malaria in easternUnited States, is not only common in weedy Ohio ponds but seems to be increasing in number.A. punctipennis, which is equally as abundant, is not a natural vector of the malaria parasitebut adults have been infected in the laboratory. Culex tar sails has been reported in Ohio byH. A. Crandell of the Toledo Area Sanitary District. It is the most important vector of bothWestern Equine and Eastern Equine Encephalitis in the United States. Other mosquito specieshave been incriminated, but C. tarsalis is the principal vector in the West.Culiseta melanura seems to be rather rare in Ohio but it has been collected in central Ohio.It is a natural vector of Eastern Equine Encephalitis. C. inornata, on the other hand, is quitecommon in Ohio and is a serious pest. Specimens have been found to be naturally infected withthe virus of Western Equine Encephalitis and it has been demonstrated that it can transmit thevirus.Other species of Ohio mosquitoes which are associated with the transmission of the variousstrains of Equine Encephalitis are Culex pipiens which is breeding in open dump areas in largenumbers, Mansonia per turbans which is especially abundant in shaded areas close to water bodiescontaining much emergent vegetation, and Aedes vexans which is the worst pest species in theentire state.Aedes triseriatus, a tree-hole breeder and a fierce biter, has been mentioned as a possiblevector of Dengue. It is a major pest in some areas and is widely spread throughout the state.At least five species of fleas of medical importance are found in Ohio. Two of these arecommonly found on the Norway Rat, Rattus norvegicus. They are as follows: Xenopsyllacheopis, the Oriental Rat Flea, and Nosopsyllus fasciatus, the Northern Rat Flea. The OrientalRat Flea is the principal vector of Pasteurella pestis, the bacillus which causes plague andRickettsia typhi which causes murine typhus in man.Pulex irritans, the human flea, too, is found in Ohio as it is elsewhere in the world. Sinceit feeds on other animals such as hogs and dogs as well as chipmunks and others, it is very oftenencountered on farms. Some infections of plague to humans may come about because of fecesbeing deposited on the skin of man.Ctenocephalides felis, the cat flea, and C. canis, the dog flea, are commonly distributed inTHE OHIO JOURNAL OF SCIENCE 60(6): 332, November, 1960.No. 6 OHIO ARTHROPODS 333Ohio. They are the species usually implicated in the transmission of the tapeworm, Dipylidiumcaninum, from dogs or cats to children who accidently swallow the flea.There are three species ot lice which are parasitic on man, Pediculus humanus capitis, thehead louse, Pediculus humanus humanus, the body louse, and Phthirus pubis, the crab louse. Allof these, of course, are found in Ohio. Only the body louse transmits the causative organismsof diseases as follows: louse-borne relapsing fever, trench fever, and murine strain of typhus,bubonic plague, and epidemic typhus.Among the flies which are domestic to Ohio, many are capable ot, or actually do carry theorganisms of disease. Musca domestica, the house fly, is the common carrier of Shigella dysen-teriae, which produces bacillary dysentery in man. Its ability to transmit other organisms patho-genic to man is well known. Some of these are as follows: Vibrio cholerae which causes cholera,Endamoeba histolytica the producer of amoebic dysentery, and Salmonella typhosa the causativeorganism of typhoid fever.Chrysops discalis, the deer fly, reported from Ohio is a proven carrier of tularemia to man.Fannia spp., the lesser house fly, are of less importance as a disease vector than the housefly, but there are records of this genus producing myiasis in man and they are certainly capableof producing digestive disorders in man.Stomxys calcitrans, the stable fly, is the "house fly that bites" in Ohio. It may easily be amechanical transmitter of anthrax because of its habit of flying from animal to animal to feed.There may be some connection between this species and human conjunctivitis. The fly larvae,however, definitely do produce myiasis in man.Muscina spp., false stable flies, are common in Ohio and transmit many of the organismsproducing digestive disorders. Where there are cases of human intestinal myiasis, this par-ticular genus is usually suspected. The flesh flies of the family Sarcophagidae are also capableof producing human intestinal myiasis.Calliphoridae, the family of bottle and blow flies, certainly can not be overlooked. Usuallythey do not invade houses in Ohio, but in the fall in many rural areas they crawl through cracksof houses probably as a means of seeking shelter from the cold nights and eventually releasethemselves indoors. They are especially annoying to housewives because of their clumsy habitsof flight and rest. There are reports of an existing connection between this group and poliobut not too much is known. The larvae produce myiasis in man.Oestridae, Cuterebridae, and Gasterophilidae are families of bot flies of some public healthsignificance in Ohio as well as elsewhere. Myiases of various parts of the human body such asthe eye, nasal passages, and frontal sinuses are caused by the larvae of these flies.Chloropidae (Oscinidae), the eye flies, are very troublesome in parts of Ohio. Infectiousmaterials may be easily transmitted from man to man by this fly. Hence it is a ready carrier ofany organism causing conjunctivitis and possibly others.Other flies which may be of lesser importance are as follows.Family Vectors ofCeratopogonidae (Biting midges, punkies) Human filariasisSimulidae (Black flies) Blinding filariasis, and tuleremiaTabanidae (Deer flies, Horse flies) Mechanical vectors of anthrax and tularemia.Bees and wasps, because of their venomous stings, are certainly more than nuisances.Case histories of persons having anaphylactic reactions are well known. As in all of the otherstates, Ohio is well populated with these insects.Triatoma sanguisuga, of the subfamily Triatominae, are found mostly in parts of southernOhio. They are known to harbor Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative organism of Chagas Disease.Triatoma lecticularius, another vector, is commonly found throughout the southern UnitedStates including all of Kentucky and might well be established in southern Ohio.Cimex lectularius, the bed bug, has not been associated with the transmission of humandiseases but occasionally causes severe bites to some people and contributes to nervous disorders.Tenebrio molitor, the yellow mealworm, a common Ohio farm pest, has been known to carryHymenolepis diminuta, the rat tapeworm, to man. It has also transmitted Hymenolepis nana,the dwarf tapeworm of the house mouse to man. Obviously, many of the enteric diseases ofman can be transmitted bv these insects.334 CHARLES O. MASTERS Vol. 60Epicauta pennsylvanica, the "blister beetle" or "old fashioned potato bug" is commonthroughout the state. An oil known as cantharidin is contained within the bodies of the adultsand will blister the skin of humans if the insects are crushed and rubbed into it.Periplaneta americana, the American cockroach, is so very common it is sometimes not takenvery seriously but it is definitely a carrier of the organisms causing dysentery, diarrhea, typhoid,and food-poisoning. They have also been found naturally infected with organisms of humanpolio. Other roaches which are almost as serious and found in Ohio are as follows: Blattellagermanica, the German cockroach, Supella supellectrilium, the brown-banded cockroach, Blattaorientalis, the Oriental cockroach, and Parcoblatta spp., the wood roaches. Cockroaches are alsoknown to carry Hymenolepis diminuta, the rat tapeworm, to man.Among the arachnids there are many which are of public health importance. Latrodectusmactans, the black widow spider, has been repeatedly found in Ohio but is not too common.Actually, although extreme pain results from the bite of this spider, very few deaths have beenreported.Rhipicephalus sanguineus, the brown dog tick, is native to Ohio. It has been found tocontain the toxin which produces tick paralysis in humans and easily transmits the various tick-borne typhuslike diseases. It is commonly associated with dogs and rarely bites man.Amblyomma americanum, the lone star tick, is common over most of the state of Ohio. Itis a transmitter of the spotted fever organism and other rickettsial disease agents as well as thebacillus Pasteurella tularensis which causes tularemia. Goats, sheep, dogs, and deer seem to bethe principal hosts. Recently the tick has been shown to be the vector of Coxiella burnetii, arickettsia which causes Q fever.Dermacentor variabilis, the American dog tick, is commonly found throughout Ohio and isbrought into homes by dogs. These are the primary transmitters of tularemia. They have alsobeen shown to be carriers of the St. Louis strain of equine encephalitis. A disease with many ofthe clinical symptoms of dengue has been reported from New York with its causative organism,a virus, isolated from D. variabilis. The tick has also been shown to be responsible for tickparalysis and the transmission of Rickettsia rickettsia, the causative organism of spotted fever.Laelops echidninus, the spiny rat mite, is found on the common Norway rat, Rattus nor-vegicus, and is suspected as being a carrier of tularemia.Ornithonyssus sylviarum, the northern fowl mite, is common in Ohio chicken houses, and ofcourse on chickens. It will bite man readily but never causes anything more serious than a rash.Dermanyssus gallinae, the chicken mite, found in Ohio chicken houses in large numbers,bites humans causing a rash but nothing more.Glyciphagus prunorum, the fruit mite, is commonly found on certain dried fruits such asraisins or prunes in grocery stores, and produces a rash known as "grocers itch" after biting.Pyemotes ventricosus, the grain itch mite, found on infested straw in Ohio sometimes causesfever, intense itching, and secondary infections among humans coming in direct contact with thestraw.Sarcoptes scabiei, the itch mite, is found in Ohio and seems to be represented by many dif-ferent forms. They are found on domestic animals and very often cause a short-lived case ofmange in humans.Allodermanyssus sanguineus, the house mouse mite, can be found living in association withthe house mouse, Mus musculus, common throughout Ohio. The mite serves as a reservoir forRickettsia akari, the causative organism of rickettsialpox in humans.Trombicula spp., the common chiggers, are a pest in many places in Ohio usually bitingthe ankles, areas of the waistline, and armpits. In America they are not known to carry diseasesbut in Asia they are important vectors of the causative organisms of scrub typhus. Obviously,much work has to be done with the mites in order to learn their true public health significance.I wish to thank the members of the staff of the Insect and Rodent ControlTraining Branch, Communicable Disease Center, U. S. Public Health Service,Atlanta, Georgia, for their very kind and valuable assistance.LITERATURE CITEDHoyt, R. N. and R. D. Worden. 1935. Malaria Epidemic in Aurora, Ohio. Public HealthRept. Wash. 50: 895-897.

Arthropods of Medical Importance in Ohio

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Arthropods of Medical Importance in Ohio

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