Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
4.2
3.0
Journals
Animals
Special Issues
Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants
share announcement

Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Small Ruminants".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 June 2022) | Viewed by 23974

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Daniel Gutiérrez-Expósito

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Animal Health Department, Faculty of Veterinary, University of Leon, Campus Vegazana s/n, 24007 León, Spain
2. Instituto de Ganadería de Montaña (CSIC-ULE), Grulleros, 24346 León, Spain
Interests: sheep; goats; protozoan; toxoplasmosis; neosporosis; immune response; animal health
Dr. María Martinez-Valladares

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Instituto de Ganadería de Montaña (CSIC-Universidad de León), 24346 León, Spain
2. Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de León, Campus de Vegazana, 24071 León, Spain
Interests: helminth infections in animals and humans; prevalence; diagnosis; detection of anthelmintic resistance; anthelmintics and new molecules with anthelmintic activity; selection of resistant animals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Parasite diseases are one of the main current threats for livestock, and their study and control are essential to improve animal health and animal welfare. In addition, lots of parasite infections are parasitic zoonoses that need to be controlled if we want to achieve world public health. During recent decades, important contributions have been made in this field based on advances in molecular biology, cell biology, epidemiology, diagnosis, immunology and antiparasitic drugs. However, there are many unknown aspects that need to be further studied.

Regarding small domestic ruminants, ovine and caprine productions are a source of meat, milk, fur and wool all over the world. In this sense, parasite diseases are responsible for important economic losses due to abortions or decreases in milk production. Furthermore, most flocks are small, managed under extensive or low-input systems and do not have computerized records to accurately quantify production, reproductive or economic parameters. In fact, during recent years, the sheep and goat industries have been under sustained financial pressure to reduce production costs, and consequently, small family-run farms have reduced in number disproportionately due to their lower profitability.

For this reason, research in parasite diseases, and especially on small ruminants, is of particular interest to improve the current situation. Thus, the open access journal Animals (EISSN 2076-2615) is currently running a Special Issue entitled “Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants”. María Martínez-Valladares and I are serving as Guest Editors for this Special Issue. We invite you to contribute a feature paper to this Special Issue. Topics of special interest are those related to control measures, treatments, epidemiology, pathogenesis, vaccination, antihelmintic resistance and immune response of parasite diseases caused by protozoans, trematodes, nematodes, cestodes and arthropods.

Dr. Daniel Gutiérrez-Expósito
Dr. María Martinez-Valladares
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • parasites
  • small ruminants
  • control measures
  • diagnosis
  • pathogenesis
  • immune response
  • drug resistance
  • vaccination

Published Papers (5 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

20 pages, 7852 KiB  
Article
Apicomplexans in Goat: Prevalence of Neospora caninum, Toxoplasma gondii, Cryptosporidium spp., Eimeria spp. and Risk Factors in Farms from Ecuador
by Kevin Celi, Lucía Guzmán and Catalina Rey-Valeirón
Animals 2022, 12(17), 2224; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ani12172224 - 29 Aug 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1844
Abstract
Neospora caninum, Toxoplasma gondii, Cryptosporidium and Eimeria cause severe impacts on the productivity of goat herds. The objectives of the present study were to establish the prevalence of these apicomplexans in goat farms from Ecuador; to evaluate a rapid test for [...] Read more.
Neospora caninum, Toxoplasma gondii, Cryptosporidium and Eimeria cause severe impacts on the productivity of goat herds. The objectives of the present study were to establish the prevalence of these apicomplexans in goat farms from Ecuador; to evaluate a rapid test for Cryptosporidium diagnosis and to identify the risk factors associated with the infections. A questionnaire was designed to obtain information from 24 goat farms from Zapotillo, Garza Real, Cazaderos, Limones and Paletillas parishes in Ecuador. Blood (n = 388) and feces (n = 391) samples were collected. Indirect ELISA and standard parasitological assays were carried out to evaluate the seroprevalence of N. caninum and T. gondii and to detect oocysts of Cryptosporidium and Eimeria. The overall prevalence values of N. caninum and T. gondii were 12.11% and 18.20%, Cryptosporidium spp. and Eimeria spp. oocysts were detected in 10.49% and 89.51% of the total samples. A low correlation value was found between the results obtained by Ziehl-Nielsen and the rapid test. The multinomial logistic regression analysis revealed that vitamin supplementation, age of diarrhea, frequency of deworming, pasture area, presence of artiodactyls, domestic fowl, administration of sulfas, age group, body condition, abortions, type of pastures and the presence of cattle were risk factors according to the parasite species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

22 pages, 3172 KiB  
Article
Effectiveness of Anthelmintic Treatments in Small Ruminants in Germany
by Katja Voigt, Maximilian Geiger, Miriam Carmen Jäger, Gabriela Knubben-Schweizer, Christina Strube and Yury Zablotski
Animals 2022, 12(12), 1501; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ani12121501 - 09 Jun 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2928
Abstract
Widespread anthelmintic resistance is a concern for small ruminant health and production worldwide. The current situation regarding anthelmintic efficacy is, however, not very well studied in Germany. Thus, a nationwide field study was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of 253 treatments performed in [...] Read more.
Widespread anthelmintic resistance is a concern for small ruminant health and production worldwide. The current situation regarding anthelmintic efficacy is, however, not very well studied in Germany. Thus, a nationwide field study was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of 253 treatments performed in 223 small ruminant flocks by faecal egg count reduction test (FECRT) using pooled samples and a modified McMaster method. The percentage of Haemonchus contortus and non-Haemonchus eggs was determined by fluorescence microscopy following peanut agglutinin–fluorescein isothiocyanate staining. Treatments were chosen and performed by farmers together with their local veterinarian, and potentially confounding factors for FECRT results were addressed as far as possible by rigorous inclusion criteria. Reduced effectiveness was observed for treatments with all examined anthelmintic classes, but treatments with benzimidazoles and moxidectin showed significantly poorer results than monepantel, a closantel and mebendazole combination, and levamisole. Low case numbers precluded reliable assessment of avermectins. Unsuccessful treatments were frequently associated with the survival of H. contortus, but this was also observed for non-Haemonchus genera. The results are highly concerning, and sustainable approaches to parasite control are urgently needed to prevent further deterioration of this situation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 1853 KiB  
Article
Rumen and Liver Fluke Infections in Sheep and Goats in Northern and Southern Germany
by Uta Alstedt, Katja Voigt, Miriam Carmen Jäger, Gabriela Knubben-Schweizer, Yury Zablotski, Christina Strube and Christoph Wenzel
Animals 2022, 12(7), 876; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ani12070876 - 30 Mar 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2818
Abstract
Paramphistomidosis has recently been identified as an emerging parasitosis in Europe. This study estimated the prevalence of rumen flukes, Fasciola hepatica and Dicrocoelium dendriticum, in small ruminants in Germany and identified occurring rumen fluke species and potential predictors for fluke infections. Pooled [...] Read more.
Paramphistomidosis has recently been identified as an emerging parasitosis in Europe. This study estimated the prevalence of rumen flukes, Fasciola hepatica and Dicrocoelium dendriticum, in small ruminants in Germany and identified occurring rumen fluke species and potential predictors for fluke infections. Pooled fecal samples from 223 sheep farms and 143 goat farms in northern and southern Germany were examined by the sedimentation technique, and molecular species identification was performed on rumen-fluke-positive samples. In sheep, a flock prevalence of 2.2% was detected for rumen flukes. Calicophoron daubneyi was identified on four of five positive farms, while species identification failed in one flock. No rumen fluke eggs were detected in the examined goat herds. F. hepatica eggs were detected in 2.7% of the sheep flocks, while the herd prevalence was 5.6% in goats. Higher prevalence values of 21.1% (sheep) and 7.0% (goats) were observed for D. dendriticum. Mixed grazing with other ruminants and previously identified infections with rumen flukes and/or F. hepatica were identified as predictors for paramphistomidosis. The distribution of the three trematode species followed a geographical pattern associated with conditions favoring the relevant intermediate hosts. C. daubneyi is an established parasite in German sheep at a currently low prevalence. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

20 pages, 1437 KiB  
Review
Haemonchosis in Sheep and Goats, Control Strategies and Development of Vaccines against Haemonchus contortus
by Isabella Adduci, Floriana Sajovitz, Barbara Hinney, Katharina Lichtmannsperger, Anja Joachim, Thomas Wittek and Shi Yan
Animals 2022, 12(18), 2339; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ani12182339 - 08 Sep 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 12417
Abstract
The evolutionary success of parasitic worms causes significant economic losses and animal health problems, including in the small ruminant industry. The hematophagous nematode Haemonchus contortus is a common endoparasite that infects wild and domestic ruminants worldwide, especially in tropical and subtropical regions. To [...] Read more.
The evolutionary success of parasitic worms causes significant economic losses and animal health problems, including in the small ruminant industry. The hematophagous nematode Haemonchus contortus is a common endoparasite that infects wild and domestic ruminants worldwide, especially in tropical and subtropical regions. To date, the most commonly applied control strategy is the administration of anthelminthic drugs. The main disadvantages of these chemicals are their ecotoxic effects, the necessary withdrawal period (especially important in dairy animals) and the increasing development of resistance. Vaccines offer an attractive alternative control strategy against Haemonchus infections. In previous years, several potential vaccine antigens prepared from H. contortus using the latest technologies have been assessed in clinical trials using different methods and strategies. This review highlights the current state of knowledge on anti-H. contortus vaccines (covering native, recombinant and DNA-based vaccines), including an evaluation, as well a discussion of the challenges and achievements in developing protective, efficient, and long-lasting vaccines to control H. contortus infection and haemonchosis in small ruminants. This paper also addresses novel developments tackling the challenge of glycosylation of putative candidates in recombinant form. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

20 pages, 759 KiB  
Review
Ovine Neosporosis: The Current Global Situation
by Julio Benavides, Marta González-Warleta, Noive Arteche-Villasol, Valentín Pérez, Mercedes Mezo and Daniel Gutiérrez-Expósito
Animals 2022, 12(16), 2074; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ani12162074 - 15 Aug 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2416
Abstract
In the past 20 years, Neospora caninum infection in sheep has been reported in at least 31 countries worldwide from all sheep-rearing continents (Europe, Asia, the Americas, Africa, and Oceania), and its role as an abortifacient agent is becoming more evident. Most studies [...] Read more.
In the past 20 years, Neospora caninum infection in sheep has been reported in at least 31 countries worldwide from all sheep-rearing continents (Europe, Asia, the Americas, Africa, and Oceania), and its role as an abortifacient agent is becoming more evident. Most studies of ovine neosporosis have focused on its epidemiology, based primarily on serological analysis, with only a few studies investigating the actual presence of the parasite by PCR and/or IHC. Individual seroprevalence rates were highly variable between countries, and even between regions within the same country, ranging from 0.0% to 67.4% positive. Furthermore, most of the studies were not directly comparable due to differences in experimental designs, sample sizes, husbandry systems, ecological factors, and serological tests (e.g., IFAT, ELISA, MAT, Western blot). The latter, along with the scarcity of studies on the relevance of N. caninum as an abortifacient agent, may bias the perception of the importance of this disease. This review summarizes the situation of N. caninum infection in sheep using all available published studies describing natural ovine neosporosis. The epidemiology shows that ovine neosporosis is found worldwide, and it poses a relevant risk to the sustainability of sheep flocks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Parasite Diseases in Small Ruminants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-5
Back to TopTop