R. Laha

Sarcoptic mange infestation in pigs: an overview

Sarcoptic mange infestation in pigs is caused by Sarcoptes scabiei var. suis. It is the most common mange infestation of pigs. The parasite is distributed worldwide. Pig owners are generally concerned about the internal parasitic infections and ignored the external parasitic infestations. But the external parasitic infestation with S.scabiei var. suis has economic significance as it causes morbidity, mortality, decreased fertility and feed conversion ratio in pigs. Keeping in view of importance of S. scabies var. suis infestation in pigs, this communication discussed about the present and past research works done on S. scabies var. suis infestation in pigs, particularly its prevalence, life cycle, pathological lesions, clinical symptoms, haematobiochemical changes, diagnosis, treatment and control, to have an idea about this infestation at a glance. It has been concluded that the research work done on sarcoptic mange infestation in pigs in India is less in comparison to other countries. It may be due to its consideration as a neglected parasite or due to it’s under report. Organization of awareness programs for the farmers by extension personalities or other authorities might be able to save the farmers from economic losses due to this infestation.

Morphology, epidemiology, and phylogeny of Babesia: An overview

Babesiosis is a tick-borne hemoprotozoan disease of domestic and wild animals. The disease is caused by various species of Babesia and some species of Babesia have also zoonotic significance. The parasite in vertebrate hosts′ remains in erythrocytes and the morphology of Babesia spp. is not uniform in all vertebrate hosts. With the advancement of science, particularly the use of molecular techniques made it easy to study the evolution of parasites and thereby reclassifying Babesia spp. as per their phylogeny and to establish the relation of one isolate of Babesia spp. with isolates throughout the world. An attempt also made in this communication to enlighten the readers regarding relationship of one isolate of Babesia spp. of a particular area to another isolate of Babesia spp. of that area or other parts of the world and phylogenetic classification of Babesia spp. was also discussed. It has been concluded that as the study on Babesia is complex in nature so monitoring of the infection with the use of modern techniques is very much needed to control the infection. Second, more research work on phylogenetic relationship of Babesia spp. isolated from different hosts is needed, particularly in India to know the evolution of Babesia spp. of a particular area, as it has great importance to study the trans boundary diseases of animals.

Coccidiosis in rabbits in a subtropical hilly region

A detailed study on rabbit coccidiosis in a subtropical hilly region of India regarding prevalence, intensity of infections, species involved and control measures adopted during mortality in a rabbit farm due to coccidiosis, was undertaken for awareness of the rabbit owners of the hilly region. Overall 57.28% rabbits were found positive for coccidial infections. Mortality in rabbit was diagnosed due to coccidiosis. Six species of Eimeria were identified i.e. E. magna, E. exigua, E. piriformis, E. coecicola, E. intestinalis and E. media and thus intestinal coccidiosis were found responsible for such mortality. Treatment with oral administration of amprolium soluble powder 20% w/w @1g/ litre of drinking water for 10 days was found to be effective to control the mortality while individual treatment was found effective to control mortality rather than group treatments. A correlation between occurrences of coccidiosis with meteorological parameters was also established. It has been concluded from this study that pathogenesity of species of Eimeria and effectiveness of medicine are region specific. Only intestinal coccidiosis could able to causes mortality in rabbit without involvement of the hepatic coccidiosis. The rainy season particularly the month of August was very much susceptible for coccidian infection in subtropical hilly region.

Complete Genome Sequence of Emerging Porcine Circovirus Types 2a and 2b from India

ABSTRACT We report here the first characterized complete genome sequence of porcine circovirus types 2a and 2b from northeastern states of India. These isolates may serve as a potential reference for the Indian strains of porcine circovirus types 2a and 2b.

Detection of classical swine fever virus E2 gene in cattle serum samples from cattle herds of Meghalaya

The present study focused on the detection and genetic characterisation of 5′ untranslated region (5′UTR) and E2 gene of classical swine fever virus (CSFV, family Flaviviridae, genus Pestivirus) from bovine population of the northeastern region of India. A total of 134 cattle serum samples were collected from organised cattle farms and were screened for CSFV antigen with a commercial antigen capture enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (Ag-ELISA) and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). A total of 10 samples were positive for CSFV antigen by ELISA, while all of them were positive in PCR for 5′UTR region. Full length E2 region of CSFV were successfully amplified from two positive samples and used for subsequent phylogenetic analysis and determination of protein 3D structure which showed similarity with reported CSFV isolate from Assam of sub-genogroup 2.1, with minor variations in protein structure.

Gastrointestinal parasitism of goats in hilly region of Meghalaya, India

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of gastrointestinal (GI) parasitic infections in goats of hilly region of Meghalaya. Materials and Methods: A total of 834 fecal samples of goats were screened for 1 year (2014-2015) using flotation techniques. Results: The overall prevalence of GI parasitic infections in goats was 28.65%. Season-wise highest infections were recorded during rainy season (34.92%) followed by cool (26.87%), hot (26.62%), and cold (20.39%) seasons. Helminths and protozoa infections were recorded in 63.60% and 23.02% animals, respectively. Among the helminths, Strongyle spp. (32.63%) was recorded highest followed by Trichuris spp. (12.55%), Moniezia spp. (10.04%), and Trichuris spp. (8.36%). Among protozoa, only Eimeria spp. was detected. Seven different species of Eimeria spp. were identified, viz., Eimeria christenseni, Eimeria hirci, Eimeria caprina, Eimeria jolchijevi, Eimeria ninakohlyakimovae, Eimeria arloingi, and Eimeria kocharii for the first time from Meghalaya. Maximum egg per gram and oocyst per gram of feces were recorded in the month of August (932.4) and September (674.05), respectively. Mixed infections were recorded in 13.38% samples. Coproculture of goat fecal samples revealed the presence of Haemonchus contortus (72.16%), Oesophagostomum spp. (14.41%), Strongyloides spp. (8.91%), and Trichostrongylus spp. (4.50%) larvae. Conclusion: This study indicates that GI helminths and protozoa infections are prevalent in goats of this hilly region of Meghalaya, throughout the year and highly prevalent during rainy season.

On the recovery of horsehair worms, Gordius sp. (Nematomorpha: Gordiida) from pork in Shillong, India

The members of the phylum Nematomorpha, called as horsehair or gordian worms, are the parasites of arthropods and emerge from their host for reproduction and early development in water. There are about 360 species of nematomorphs described till date. Although, horsehair worms are parasites of arthropod species, sporadic cases of their occurrence have also been reported from several other hosts, including man. This paper describes a case history of the occurrence of two nematomorph worms in the meat of a pig in Shillong, India. The worms were reported to have emerged in live condition from pork bought by a consumer from local market in Shillong. One of the recovered specimens was studied by scanning electron microscopy for species determination and identified as Gordius sp., mainly on the basis of flat polygonal areoles and fine bristles on the cuticle.