Transmammary transmission of mesocercariae of Alaria marcianae (Trematoda) in experimentally infected primates

A lactating primate, Callithrix jacchus, was infected experimentally with 600 mesocercariae of Alaria marcianae 10 days after parturition to determine if she would transmit the mesocercariae to her offspring. Her twin infants were examined 4 wk postinoculation and 16 mesocercariae were found in their tissues. The female was mated again and gave birth to a litter of triplets. She was not given additional mesocercariae. One infant died within hours of birth without suckling and was found negative for any stage of A. marcianae. The other 2 were allowed to nurse for 5 wk, examined and found to be infected with a total of 115 mesocercariae in various tissues, 1 metacercaria in the lungs, and 1 immature and 2 fully formed ovigerous adults in the small intestines. The female was examined at the same time and 246 mesocercariae were recovered. No other stage was found. Histological examination of her mammary glands revealed numerous mesocercariae in the milk-laden alveoli.     

Migration of Alaria marcianae (Trematoda) in domestic cats

The migration of Alaria marcianae was studied in domestic cats. Mesocercariae penetrated the stomach wall, entered the abdominal cavity, and penetrated the diaphragm within 3 hr. Direct penetration of the lungs via the thoracic cavity occurred within 6 hr. Also observed was a circulatory route to the lungs when mesocercariae were recovered from both the liver and the chambers of the heart. Upon entrance into the lungs, mesocercariae began to enlarge with sequential lappet formation, holdfast development, and penetration gland atrophy. By day 7, they were recognized as fully formed diplostomula. The diplostomula resided a minimum of 4 days in the lungs as they first appeared in the duodenum by day 11. Diplostomula were found in both the trachea and stomach, indicating that they reach the duodenum after being coughed up from the lungs and swallowed. Diplostomula recovered from the duodenum were indistinguishable morphologically from the most advanced lung forms. Maturation of the reproductive organs occurred in as little as 4 days as the first ovigerous specimens were seen on day 15. The bidirectional route to the lungs may be significant when viewed in light of the recent discovery of transmammarian transmission. If a hormonal stimulus is involved, it is conceivable that those mesocercariae in the circulatory system may be more readily influenced than those undergoing a somatic migration. This may account for why some larvae are diverted to the mammary glands in a pregnant mammal instead of the normal, maturative migration to the duodenum.     

Transmammary infection of paratenic and definitive hosts with Alaria marcianae (trematoda) mesocercariae

Transmammary infection with Alaria marcianae mesocercariae was demonstrated using mice as model, paratenic hosts. Prenatal transmission was ruled out because neonates removed immediately postpartum from infected dams were never infected. Mesocercarial distribution in virgin females and in females examined immediately postpartum showed no marked preference for the mammary glands. In contrast, infection of neonates that were allowed to suckle on infected dams was absolute, and the number of mesocercariae in the mammary glands of postparturient dams that suckled their young was increased significantly. These experimental observations were coupled with other observations on paratenic hosts to outline the pathways open to mesocercariae in gravid hosts. The term amphiparatenic host is coined for those host species that are paratenic hosts as adults, but as juveniles can serve as definitive hosts.     

Maternal transmission by Alaria marcianae (Trematoda) and the concept of amphiparatenesis

The term amphiparatenic host was coined originally for hosts of Alaria marcianae that as adults are paratenic hosts, but as juveniles serve as definitive hosts. In this study the concept of amphiparatenesis is placed in a theoretical context, maternal transmission shown to be the basic mechanism, and the concept extended to include Toxocara canis, T. cati, T. pteropodis, Neoascaris vitulorum, Ancylostoma caninum, Uncinaria lucasi, various species of Strongyloides, Pharyngostomoides procyonis, and P. adenocephala. Alaria marcianae mesocercariae were used in a feline model to show that male and nonlactating female cats are definitive hosts, but lactating cats are primarily paratenic hosts. Inoculation of 1 female cat resulted in the infection of 21 of her offspring via the milk over the course of 5 litters and after a 3-yr period she still had viable larvae in her tissues. The ability of parasites to remain immature in amphiparatenic hosts is believed to be an adaptation on the part of the parasite to promote dissemination through maternal transmission and not the result of resistance, immunological or otherwise, on the part of the host. The amphiparatenic concept has important implications that include: the use of pregnant and lactating females as reservoirs of infection for the offspring; infection transmitted through a contagious transplacental or transmammary pathway; a parasite population structure in which adult worms are in greater abundance in neonate than adult hosts; and the effective control of parasites utilizing this strategy proving to be very difficult.     

Transmammary infection of free-ranging Florida panther neonates by Alaria marcianae (Trematoda: Diplostomatidae)

Two freshly-dead female Florida panther (FP) neonates, Puma concolor couguar (=Puma concolor coryi), an 11-day-old and a 17-day-old, were collected in the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge (26 degrees 14'N, 81 degrees 36'W), Collier County, Florida. The 2 neonates were siblings and had presumably fed only on milk from the dam since birth. A 12-day-old female FP neonate was collected in the Big Cypress National Preserve (26 degrees 05'N, 81 degrees 15'W), Collier County, Florida and had also fed only on milk from the dam since birth. Milk was the only food item found in the gastrointestinal tract of these neonates. Mesocercariae and diplostomula of Alaria marcianae were collected from the lungs of the 3 neonates, indicating a transmammary route of infection. No mesocercariae, diplostomula, or mature A. marcianae were seen in the stomach or small intestine. The probable paratenic host for the A. marcianae infection in the adult Florida panther is the raccoon (Procyon lotor).     

Electrophoretic separation of esterases of Alaria marcianae (La Rue, 1917) (Trematoda).

1. Disc electrophoresis was used to determine the esterase isoenzymes present in adults of the strigeoid trematode Alaria marcianae (La Rue, 1917). 2. Eight esterase bands were found with alpha-naphthyl acetate as the substrate and Fast Blue RR as the dye. 3. From results obtained with inhibitors, four different types of esterases were tentatively identified; cholinesterase (one band), ali-esterase or B-type (one band), arylesterase or A-type (2 bands) and acetylesterase or C-type (4 bands).     

Transmission of Ancylostoma caninum and Alaria marcianae in coyotes (Canis latrans)

One of seven female coyotes (Canis latrans) captured in Webb County, Texas during September 1986 and confined and mated in holding facilities at Millville, Utah whelped the following spring. The maternal female (greater than 5-yr-old) and her five neonates were killed at 22 days postparturition. All were infected with adult Ancylostoma caninum and were passing eggs in their feces. Also, the neonates and maternal female were infected with immature and adult Alaria marcianae, respectively. These findings suggested that the transmammary route is an important transmission mechanism for acquisition of these species of helminths in coyotes. The lack of overdispersion in the frequency distribution of these parasites and infection of the entire litter indicated that transmission from the infected female was nonselective among the pups.     

Systemic infection with Alaria americana (Trematoda).

Alaria americana is a trematode, the adult of which is found in mammalian carnivores. The first case of disseminated human infection by the mesocercarial stage of this worm occurred in a 24-year-old man. The infection possibly was acquired by the eating of inadequately cooked frogs, which are intermediate hosts of the worm. The diagnosis was made during life by lung biopsy and confirmed at autopsy. The mesocercariae were present in the stomach wall, lymph nodes, liver, myocardium, pancreas and surrounding adipose tissue, spleen, kidney, lungs, brain and spinal cord. There was no host reaction to the parasites. Granulomas were present in the stomach wall, lymph nodes and liver, but the worms were not identified in them. Hypersensitivity vasculitis and a bleeding diathesis due to disseminated intravascular coagulation and a circulating anticoagulant caused his death 8 days after the onset of his illness.     

Findings of Alaria alata mesocercariae in wild boars (Sus scrofa) in eastern Austria

From June 2011 to February 2012, a total of 451 wild boar carcasses from eastern regions of Austria were tested for the presence of Alaria alata mesocercariae by means of a migration technique. Mesocercariae were recovered from carcasses from the province of Lower Austria (25/337 carcasses) and the Burgenland (5/64), but not from Vienna (0/50). In positive samples (fatty and glandular tissue and muscle), the median number of mesocercariae was 4.5 per 35?g. Within districts, but also between animals hunted at the same day in the same hunting area, frequencies of detection varied considerably.     

Alaria alata (Trematoda: Alariidae)--the parasite of canines in the Byelorussian woodlands

The canines have been investigated during 19 year (1980-1998) in the Belorussian Polesie in realtion to their infection with the trematode Alaria alata (Goeze, 1782). Four species of canines (Canis familiaris, C. lupus, Vulpes vulpes and Nyctereutes procyonoides) have been recorded as definitive hosts. A significance of meliorative channels as potentian foci of the alariasis infection is considered for the first time.     

Localization of acid phosphatase in lactating rat mammary glands

Summary Localization of acid phosphatase in mammary glands of lactating rats was studied by both biochemical and cytochemical methods. Cytochemically, acid phosphatase activity was detected by using lead citrate as the capture agent for the inorganic phosphate released from p-nitrophenyl phosphate. The activity was predominantly localized in the lumina of the endomembrane system and in the milk that had been secreted into the alveolar lumen. Biochemically, acid phosphatase was present in all the subcellular fractions with higher activities in the membrane-associated fractions. The localization of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatases within the endomembrane system of fully lactating rat mammary tissue suggests a possible role for these enzymes in milk secretory processes.Abbreviations ASMX 3-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid 2,4-dimethylanilide - DMSO dimethylsulfoxide - DTT dithiothreitol - EDTA ethylenedinitrilo tetra-acetic acid - FGM fat globule membranes - MES 2-(N-morpholino) ethanesulfonic acid - PCMB p-chloromercuribenzoate - p-NPP p-nitrophenyl phosphate     

Purification and characterization of mouse alpha-lactalbumin from lactating mammary glands

The whey protein, alpha-lactalbumin, was purified from lactating mammary glands of mice at high yields. It exists as two major charge forms (pI values of 6.2 and 5.8) with similar molecular weights (approx. 14600). Antibodies prepared against these peptides precipitate newly synthesized and secreted alpha-lactalbumin from organ cultures of mid-pregnancy mammary glands. The antibody is specific for mouse alpha-lactalbumin as it does not react with mouse casein, mouse serum or purified bovine alpha-lactalbumin or galactosyl transferase. In addition, it blocks enzymatic activity of alpha-lactalbumin in mouse milk but has no effect on guinea pig or human milk. A very sensitive radioimmunoassay has been developed with this antibody which can detect alpha-lactalbumin levels as low as 0.25 ng.     

Characterization of a progestin-binding component in lactating rat mammary glands

Experiments were carried out to identify progestin-binding receptors in the mammary gland where casein synthesis is known to be inhibited by this hormone. A progestin-binding component with high affinity, low capacity and a sedimentation coefficient of 8.8 S was isolated from the cytosol of lactating rat mammary glands. This component strongly bound [³H]R5020 (17,21-dimethyl-19-nor-4,9-pregnadiene-3,20-dione) with a dissociation constant of 3.9 · 10^?9 M under low-salt conditions and with that of 8.2 · 10^?10 M in the presence of 0.3 M KCl. Specificity studies showed a higher degree of progestin specificity under high salt conditions. In the absence of KCl, binding of [³H]-R5020 was inhibited by unlabeled glucocorticoid in the same degree as unlabeled progestin, but the inhibition by glucocorticoid was greatly diminished by the presence of 0.3 M KCl. These observations suggest that the [³H]R5020-binding-component is the progestin receptor and that its function may be regulated by the concentration of glucocorticoid and salt.     

Stereospecific biosynthesis of triacylglycerols in mammary glands from lactating rats.

Microsomal plus cytosol preparations from the mammary gland of lactating rats are capable of incorporating palmitic acid and oleic acid into triacylglycerols. These triacylglycerols are similar in structure to those found in rat milk, where palmitic acid tends to be confined to the sn-2-position of the glycerol. Both glycerol 3-phosphate and dihydroxyacetone phosphate function as acyl acceptors. The enzymic synthesis of triacylglycerols appears in late pregnancy, increases rapidly during early lactation, but disappears within 3 days of weaning.