A Nasal Myiasis in a 76-Year-Old Female in Korea

On July 2009, 5 fly larvae were discovered inside the nose of a 76-year-old female. She was living in Cheonan-si, and in a state of coma due to rupture of an aortic aneurysm. Surgery was performed on the day of admission, and the larvae were found 4 days later. By observing their posterior spiracle, the larvae were identified as Lucilia sericata. Considering the rapid development of this species, the infection was likely acquired during hospitalization. Further investigation on the hospital environment should be needed to know the origin of the infection.     

A Case of Oral Myiasis Caused by Lucilia sericata (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in Korea

We report here a case of oral myiasis in the Republic of Korea. The patient was a 37-year-old man with a 30-year history of Becker''s muscular dystrophy. He was intubated due to dyspnea 8 days prior to admission to an intensive care unit (ICU). A few hours after the ICU admission, 43 fly larvae were found during suction of the oral cavity. All maggots were identified as the third instars of Lucilia sericata (Diptera: Calliphoridae) by morphology. We discussed on the characteristics of myiasis acquired in Korea, including the infection risk and predisposing factors.     

An aural myiasis case in a 54-year-old male farmer in Korea

A 54-year-old male farmer residing in Chunchon, Korea, complaining of blood tinged discharge and tinnitus in the left ear for two days, was examined in August 16, 1996. Otoscopic examination revealed live maggots from the ear canal. The patient did not complain of any symptoms after removal of maggots. Five maggots recovered were identified as the third stage larvae of Lucilia sericata (Diptera: Calliphoridae). This is the first record of aural myiasis in Korea.     

Canine Wound Myiasis Caused by Lucilia sericata (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in Korea

Myiasis is a relatively common infection of animals kept as pets, although only 1 case of canine myiasis has been described so far in the Republic of Korea. In the present study, we report an additional case of canine wound myiasis with identification of its causative agent, Lucilia sericata. An 8-year-old male Siberian husky dog was referred with anorexia, vomiting, and diarrhea to the Chungbuk National University Veterinary Medical Center, Cheongju-si (city), Chungcheongbuk-do (province), Korea in July 2013. Physical examination indicated the patient had a deep wound filled with a maggot swarm as a left gluteal lesion. A total of 216 maggots were removed by forceps, and the wounded area was sponged with gauzes and disinfected with 70% alcohol and a povidone-iodine solution. After daily care and suturing the wound, the patient was discharged at day 19 after admission. Recovered worms possessed morphological characteristics similar to those of L. sericata, namely, a sub-cylindrical body with 6–8 lobed anterior spiracles, round shaped with a button surrounded by a peritremal ring with no gaps, and similar distances between dorsal, median, and outer papillae of the 12th segment. Additionally, cox1 partial sequences (528 bp) obtained in the present study showed 100% identity with those of L. sericata (GenBank no. {"type":"entrez-nucleotide","attrs":{"text":"KT272854.1","term_id":"992320795","term_text":"KT272854.1"}}KT272854.1). L. sericata is indicated as a pathogen of myiasis infection not only in humans, but also in animals kept as pets in Korea.     

Traumatic Myiasis Caused by an Association of Sarcophaga tibialis (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) and Lucilia sericata (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in a Domestic Cat in Italy

We describe here a rare case of traumatic myiasis occurred in August 2014, caused by an association of 2 Diptera species, Sarcophaga tibialis Macquart (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) and Lucilia sericata (Meigen) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), in a domestic cat in northern Italy. Species identification was based on adult male morphology. The present case is the first report of S. tibialis as an agent of myiasis in Italy, and also the first ever report of myiasis caused by an association of S. tibialis and L. sericata. The cat developed an extensive traumatic myiasis in a large wound on the rump, which was treated pharmacologically and surgically. The biology, ecology, and distribution of S. tibialis and L. sericata are also discussed. A literature review is provided on cases of myiasis caused by S. tibialis, and cases of myiasis by L. sericata involving cats worldwide and humans and animals in Italy.     

Gastrointestinal myiasis by larvae of Sarcophaga sp. and Oestrus sp. in Egypt: report of cases, and endoscopical and morphological studies

Four cases of gastric or intestinal myiasis are reported. The cases contain 2 males (1 child 10 years old, and 1 adult 40 years old) and 2 females (1 girl 18 years old, and 1 adult 50 years old) from Minia Governorate, Southern Egypt. Three of them, including cases no. 1, 3, and 4, were gastric myiasis, and complained of offensive hematemesis of bright red blood. Minute moving worms, larvae of the fly, were found in the vomitus. On the other hand, case no. 2 had intestinal myiasis, and complained of abdominal distention, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. The stool of case 2 was mixed with blood, and minute moving worms were observed in the stool. Endoscopy was performed to explore any pathological changes in the stomach of the patients. The larvae were collected and studied macroscopically, microscopically, and us-ing a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to identify their species. Three different types of larvae were identified. The larvae isolated from case 1 were diagnosed as the second stage larvae of Sarcophaga species, and the larvae isolated from case 2 were the third stage larvae of Sarcophaga species. On the other hand, the larvae isolated from cases 3 and 4 were diagnosed as the third stage larvae of Oestrus species.     

Anisakis simplex larvae: infection status in marine fish and cephalopods purchased from the Cooperative Fish Market in Busan, Korea

The infection status of marine fish and cephalopods with Anisakis simplex third stage larva (L3) was studied over a period of 1 year. A total of 2,537 specimens, which consisted of 40 species of fish and 3 species of cephalopods, were purchased from the Cooperative Fish Market in Busan, Korea, from August 2006 to July 2007. They were examined for A. simplex L3 from the whole body cavity, viscera, and muscles. A. simplex L3 were confirmed by light microscopy. The overall infection rate reached 34.3%, and average 17.1 larvae were parasitized per infected fish. Fish that recorded the highest infection rate was Lophiomus setigerus (100%), followed by Liparis tessellates (90%), Pleurogrammus azonus (90%), and Scomber japonicus (88.7%). The intensity of infection was the highest in Gadus macrocephalus (117.7 larvae per fish), followed by S. japonicus (103.9 larvae) and L. setigerus (54.2 larvae). Although abundance of A. simplex L3 was not seasonal in most of the fish species, 10 of the 16 selected species showed the highest abundance in February and April. A positive correlation between the intensity of L3 infection and the fish length was obvious in S. japonicus and G. macrocephalus. It was likely that A. simplex L3 are more frequently infected during the spring season in some species of fish. Our study revealed that eating raw or undercooked fish or cephalopods could still be a source of human infection with A. simplex L3 in Korea.     

A Locally Acquired Falciparum Malaria via Nosocomial Transmission in Korea

A 57-year old man who was admitted to an emergency room of a tertiary hospital with hemoptysis developed malarial fever 19 days later and then died from severe falciparum malaria 2 days later. He had not traveled outside of Korea for over 30 years. Through intensive interviews and epidemiological surveys, we found that a foreign patient with a recent history of travel to Africa was transferred to the same hospital with severe falciparum malaria. We confirmed through molecular genotyping of the MSP-1 gene that Plasmodium falciparum genotypes of the 2 patients were identical. It is suggested that a breach of standard infection control precautions resulted in this P. falciparum transmission between 2 patients in a hospital environment. This is the first report of a nosocomial transmission of falciparum malaria in Korea.     

Modelling the impact of climate change on spatial patterns of disease risk: sheep blowfly strike by Lucilia sericata in Great Britain

Understanding the spatial scale and temporal pattern of disease incidence is a fundamental prerequisite for the development of appropriate management and intervention strategies. It is particularly critical, given the need to understand the elevated risks linked to climate change, to allow the most likely changes in the distribution of parasites and disease vectors to be predicted under a range of climate change scenarios. Using statistical models, the spatial distribution and climatic correlates of a range of parasites and diseases have been mapped previously, but their development into dynamic, predictive tools is less common. The aim of the work described here, was to use a species distribution model to characterise the environmental determinants of the monthly occurrence of ovine cutaneous myiasis (blowfly strike) by Lucilia sericata, the most frequent primary agent of northern European myiasis, and to then use this model to describe the potential spatial changes that might be expected in response to predicted climate change in Great Britain. The model predicts that the range of elevated temperatures predicted by current climate change scenarios will result in an increase in the risk of strike and an elongated blowfly season. However, even for the most rapid warming scenario predictions over the next 70 years, strike is not predicted to occur throughout the winter. Nevertheless, in this latter case, parts of central and southern England are likely to become too hot and dry for strike by L. sericata, to persist in mid-summer. Under these conditions, it is possible that other, more pathogenic Mediterranean agents of myiasis, such as Wolfhartia magnifica, could potentially replace L. sericata. Where the phenology of strike is altered by climate change, as predicted here, significant changes to the timing and frequency of parasite treatments and husbandry practices, such as shearing, will be required to manage the problem. The results suggest that the modelling approach adopted here could be usefully applied to a range of disease systems.     

A case of fatal hyperinfective strongyloidiasis with discovery of autoinfective filariform larvae in sputum

The autoinfective filariform larva of Strongyloides stercoralis causes hyperinfection in immunosuppressed hosts. Here we report on the case of a male patient who was admitted to the emergency room at Gwangju Veterans Hospital with a complaint of dyspnea, and who was receiving corticosteroid therapy for asthma. Many slender larvae of S. stercoralis with a notched tail were detected in Papanicolaou stained sputum. They measured 269 +/- 21.2 microm in length and 11 +/- 0.6 microm in width. The esophagus extended nearly half of the body length. The larvae were identified putatively as autoinfective third-stage filariform larvae, and their presence was fatal. The autoinfective filariform larva of S. stercoralis has not been previously reported in Korea.     

Proteus mirabilis interkingdom swarming signals attract blow flies

Flies transport specific bacteria with their larvae that provide a wider range of nutrients for those bacteria. Our hypothesis was that this symbiotic interaction may depend on interkingdom signaling. We obtained Proteus mirabilis from the salivary glands of the blow fly Lucilia sericata; this strain swarmed significantly and produced a strong odor that attracts blow flies. To identify the putative interkingdom signals for the bacterium and flies, we reasoned that as swarming is used by this bacterium to cover the food resource and requires bacterial signaling, the same bacterial signals used for swarming may be used to communicate with blow flies. Using transposon mutagenesis, we identified six novel genes for swarming (ureR, fis, hybG, zapB, fadE and PROSTU_03490), then, confirming our hypothesis, we discovered that fly attractants, lactic acid, phenol, NaOH, KOH and ammonia, restore swarming for cells with the swarming mutations. Hence, compounds produced by the bacterium that attract flies also are utilized for swarming. In addition, bacteria with the swarming mutation rfaL attracted fewer blow flies and reduced the number of eggs laid by the flies. Therefore, we have identified several interkingdom signals between P. mirabilis and blow flies.     

Efficient germ-line transformation of the economically important pest species Lucilia cuprina and Lucilia sericata (Diptera, Calliphoridae)

The green blowfly species Lucilia cuprina and Lucilia sericata are economically important pests for the sheep industries of Australia and New Zealand. L. cuprina has long been considered a good target for a genetic pest management program. In addition, L. sericata maggots are used in the cleaning of wounds and necrotic tissue of patients suffering from ulcers that are difficult to treat by other methods. Development of efficient transgenesis methods would greatly facilitate the development of strains ideal for genetic control programs or could potentially improve “maggot therapy”. We have previously reported the germ-line transformation of L. cuprina and the design of a “female killing system” that could potentially be applied to this species. However, the efficiency of transformation obtained was low and transformed lines were difficult to detect due to the low expression of the EGFP marker used. Here we describe an efficient and reliable method for germ-line transformation of L. cuprina using new piggyBac vector and helper plasmids containing the strong promoter from the L. cuprina hsp83 gene to drive expression of the transposase and fluorescent protein marker gene. We also report, for the first time, the germ-line transformation of L. sericata using the new piggyBac vector/helper combination.     

Morphological diversity of first instar larvae in Miltogramma subgenus Pediasiomyia (Diptera: Sarcophagidae, Miltogramminae)

The morphology of first instar larvae of three species of Miltogramma Meigen subgenus Pediasiomyia Rohdendorf is described using SEM and light microscope techniques. Miltogramma chrysochlamys (Rohdendorf), Miltogramma margiana (Rohdendorf) and Miltogramma przhevalskyi (Rohdendorf) share with other satellite flies the presence of an elongated sensillum basiconicum of the maxillary palpus and numerous longitudinal cuticular ridges on the integument of all segments; and they share with other Miltogramma spp. a maxillary palpus situated on a more or less raised base. While the first instar M. margiana is very similar to first instars of Miltogramma (sensu stricto), first instars of M. chrysochlamys and M. przhevalskyi share several features unique among Miltogramminae: antennal dome situated on a flat or indistinct basal ring, antennal dome flattened, border between pseudocephalon and first thoracic segment with a pair of fleshy processes, and basal ring with trichoid sensillum. First instars of M. chrysochlamys and M. przhevalskyi are unique in having both sb1 and sb2 of the sensilla basiconica of the maxillary palpus elongated, and M. przhevalskyi has an unpaired, median proleg on most abdominal segments.     

Life history and description of larva and pupa of Platyphileurus felscheanus Ohaus, 1910, a scarabaeid feeding on bromeliad tissues in Brazil,to be excluded from Phileurini (Coleoptera,Scarabaeidae, Dynastinae)

The third instar larvae and the pupae of Platyphileurus felscheanus Ohaus, 1910 (Phileurini), recently synonymized with Surutu jelineki Endrődi, 1975 (Cyclocephalini), are described and illustrated, and some life history information is given. The larvae were collected and reared in bromeliads in rain forests of Santa Catarina state in southern Brazil. The systematic position of this monotypic genus is reassessed at the tribe level by considering larval and adult morphological characters. Both character sets, being described and illustrated, suggest the placement of Platyphileurus in the tribe Oryctini.     

A case of Strongyloides stercoralis infection.

Strongyloidiasis has been recognized as one of the life-threatening parasitic infections in the immunocompromised patients. We report an intestinal infection case of Strongyloides stercoralis in a 61-year-old man. Rhabditiform larvae were detected in the stool examination and developed to filariform larvae having a notched tail through the Harada-Mori filter paper culture. The patient received five courses of albendazole therapy but not cured of strongyloidiasis.     

Expressed sequence tags of Trichinella spiralis muscle stage larvae

In order to obtain greater insight into the relevant genomic expression patterns of Trichinella spiralis, 992 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were collected from a cDNA library of T. spiralis muscle stage larvae and assembled into 60 clusters and 385 singletons. Of them, 445 (44.7%) ESTs were annotated to their homologous genes, and small fractions were matched to known genes of nematodes. The annotated ESTs were classified into 25 eukaryotic orthologous groups (KOG). Cytochrome C oxidase (34 clones) was found to be most frequent species.     

Cat flea infestation in a hospital: a case report

Cat flea bite in humans results in extremely pruritic skin lesions. It has been reported to occur among those living in domiciliary accommodation. However, nosocomial infestation with cat flea has not been reported. We hereby report a case of nosocomial infestation of cat flea in a hospital facility. Identification of the parasite, its appropriate eradication, and adequate medical management of the patients resulted in a satisfactory outcome.     

Microsporidian infections in Lymantria dispar larvae: interactions and effects of multiple species infections on pathogen horizontal transmission

The interactions in multiple species infections and effects on the horizontal transmission of three microsporidian species, Vairimorpha disparis, Nosema lymantriae and Endoreticulatus schubergi, infecting Lymantria dispar were evaluated in the laboratory. Simultaneous and sequential inoculations of host larvae were performed and the resulting infections were evaluated. Test larvae were exposed to the inoculated larvae to measure horizontal transmission. Dual species infections demonstrated interspecific competition between Nosema and Vairimorpha in the host larvae, but no observable competition occurred between Endoreticulatus and either of the other microsporidian species. Timing of inoculation was an important factor determining the outcome of competition between Nosema and Vairimorpha. The species inoculated first showed a higher rate of successful establishment; a time lag of 7 days between inoculations allowed the first species to essentially exclude the second. The microsporidia differed in efficiency of horizontal transmission. Nosema and Endoreticulatus were transmitted at very high rates, close to 100%. Horizontal transmission of Vairimorpha was less efficient, ranging from 25% to a maximum of 75%. The patterns of infection observed in inoculated larvae were reflected in the test larvae that acquired infections in the horizontal transmission experiments. Competition with Vairimorpha suppressed horizontal transmission of Nosema after simultaneous and sequential inoculation. In simultaneous inoculation experiments Endoreticulatus had no effect on transmission of Nosema and Vairimorpha.     

Positivity and intensity of Gnathostoma spinigerum infective larvae in farmed and wild-caught swamp eels in Thailand

From July 2008 to June 2009, livers of the swamp eels (Monopterus alba) were investigated for advanced third-stage larvae (AL3) of Gnathostoma spinigerum. Results revealed that 10.2% (106/1,037) and 20.4% (78/383) of farmed eels from Aranyaprathet District, Sa Kaeo Province and those of wild-caught eels obtained from a market in Min Buri District of Bangkok, Thailand were infected, respectively. The prevalence was high during the rainy and winter seasons. The infection rate abruptly decreased in the beginning of summer. The highest infection rate (13.7%) was observed in September and absence of infection (0%) in March-April in the farmed eels. Whereas, in the wild-caught eels, the highest rate (30.7%) was observed in November, and the rate decreased to the lowest at 6.3% in March. The average no. (mean±SE) of AL3 per investigated liver in farmed eels (1.1±0.2) was significantly lower (P=0.040) than those in the caught eels (0.2±0.03). In addition, the intensity of AL3 recovered from each infected liver varied from 1 to 18 (2.3±0.3) in the farmed eels and from 1 to 47 (6.3±1.2) in the caught eels, respectively. The AL3 intensity showed significant difference (P=0.011) between these 2 different sources of eels. This is the first observation that farmed eels showed positive findings of G. spinigerum infective larvae. This may affect the standard farming of the culture farm and also present a risk of consuming undercooked eels from the wild-caught and farmed eels.