Evidence of intestinal parasites of dinosaurs

Poinar, George; Boucot, A. J.

doi:10.1017/s0031182006000138

Cited by 86 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…In contrast, in the facies studied at the State of Goiás, Brazil, fossilization occurred in deeper water conditions. Feces may disintegrate in water and hence some believe that subaerial conditions are more suitable for their preservation (Poinar and Boucot, 2006), as seen in many coprolites from young archeological contexts preserved via desiccation (Wood and Wilmshurst, 2014). However, the process of mineralization and/or lithification may require some initial humidity of the fecal mass (see Bajdek et al, 2016).…”

Section: Taphonomic Effects Of the Environmental Conditions Under Whimentioning

confidence: 99%

The Feeding Habits of Mesosauridae

Silva

Ferigolo

Bajdek³

et al. 2017

Front. Earth Sci.

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Mesosauridae comprises the oldest known aquatic amniotes which lived in Gondwana during the Early Permian. Previous work in the Uruguayan mesosaur-bearing Mangrullo Formation suggested that mesosaurids lived in an inland water body, inferred as moderately hypersaline, with exceptional preservational conditions that justified describing these strata as a Fossil-Lagerstätte. Exquisitely preserved articulated mesosaur skeletons, including gastric content and associated coprolites, from the Brazilian Iratí Formation in the State of Goiás (central-western Brazil) indicate excellent conditions of preservation, extending the Konservat-Lagerstätte designation to both units in the Paraná Basin. The near-absence of more resistant fossil remains, like actinopterygian and temnospondyl bones, demonstrates the faunistic poverty of the mesosaur-bearing "salty sea." Our studies of the alimentary habits of mesosaurids through the use of stereoscopic microscopy, light and electronic microscopy, and X-ray diffractometry suggest that the diet of mesosaurids was predominantly composed of pygocephalomorph crustaceans (possibly not exceeding 20 mm in length). However, the presence of bones and bone fragments of small mesosaurs in the gastric content, cololites, coprolites, and possible regurgitalites may also indicate cannibalistic and/or scavenging habits. Cannibalism is relatively common among vertebrates, particularly during conditions of environmental stress, like food shortage. Likewise, the apparent abundance of pygocephalomorph crustacean fossils in the Iratí and Mangrullo Formations, outside and within the studied gastric, cololite, and coprolite contents, might have to do with environmental stress possibly caused by volcanic activity, in particular ash spread into the basin during the Early Permian. In this context, casual necrophagy on the dead bodies of small mesosaurs and large pygocephalomorphs might have been an alternative alimentary behavior adopted for survival in mesosaurs.

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Section: Taphonomic Effects Of the Environmental Conditions Under Whimentioning

confidence: 99%

The Feeding Habits of Mesosauridae

Silva

Ferigolo

Bajdek³

et al. 2017

Front. Earth Sci.

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“…The establishment of some of these microbes, at least for short periods, would have occurred multiple times. Reptiles were one of the early hosts of intestinal protozoan diseases [100] as shown by the discovery of mature cysts of Entamoebites antiquus in a dinosaur coprolite from the Early Cretaceous Bernissart Iguanodon shaft in Belgium [101] (Figure 49). The fossil cysts resembled species in the widespread modern genus Entamoeba that infect amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.…”

Section: 3mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The oldest fossil evidence of this group is Early Cretaceous eggs of Ascarites spp. from a dinosaur coprolite in Belgium [101]. However, based on the earliest fossil record of their host group, an estimated date for the origin of ascarids would be in the Permian [15].…”

Section: Nematodesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It has been suggested that humans acquired schistosomes from ruminant and rodent definitive hosts sometime in the Miocene [161]. This is quite possible since the oldest fossil evidence of this group is an egg of the trematode, Digenites proterus, recovered from a dinosaur coprolite in the Early Cretaceous Bernissart Iguanodon shaft in Belgium [101].…”

Section: Trematodesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evolutionary History of Terrestrial Pathogens and Endoparasites as Revealed in Fossils and Subfossils

Poinar

2014

Advances in Biology

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The present work uses fossils and subfossils to decipher the origin and evolution of terrestrial pathogens and endoparasites. Fossils, as interpreted by morphology or specific features of their hosts, furnish minimum dates for the origin of infectious agents, coevolution with hosts, and geographical locations. Subfossils, those that can be C 14 dated (roughly under 50,000 years) and are identified by morphology as well as molecular and immunological techniques, provide time periods when humans became infected with various diseases. The pathogen groups surveyed include viruses, bacteria, protozoa, fungi, and select multicellular endoparasites including nematodes, trematodes, cestodes, and insect parasitoids in the terrestrial environment.

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“…Indirect evidence based on the frequency of erosive lesions found in tyrannosaurids suggests infection by a Trichomonas gallinae-like protozoan and represents the first report of an avian-transmissible disease in non-avian theropod dinosaurs (Wolff et al 2009). Cysts similar to those of the extant genus Entamoeba have been preserved in coprolites from the Early Cretaceous, enabling the description of two new genera and species, Entamoebites antiquus (Poinar & Boucot 2006) and Endamoebites proterus (Poinar 2009). Unsporulated coccidian oocysts (Archeococcidia antiquus sp.…”

Section: A Brief History Of Studies On Protozoa In Ancient Remainsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studies on protozoa in ancient remains - A Review

Frías

Leles

Araújo

2013

Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz

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Since the beginning of the last century, paleoparasitology has been focused on understanding the origin and evolution of infectious diseases, relying on archaeological and paleontological material to do so. A wide diversity of intestinal parasites has been retrieved from ancient remains, primarily from helminths (Gonçalves et al. 2003). However, although protozoa exhibit a global distribution, they are not recovered easily from archaeological contexts. This scarcity might be related to difficulties in detecting these organisms using traditional optical microscopy and to the sensitivity of parasitic structures, which are less resistant to taphonomic processes, leading to a low estimation of protozoa in the archaeological record.This literature review aims to identify and summarise the geographic distribution of protozoa in the archaeological record, with an emphasis on protozoa associated with humans, including both intestinal and tissue parasites and the methodologies used to study them in ancient remains. An electronic database search was performed targeting studies on protozoa in the fields of paleoparasitology, archaeology and paleopathology and authors showing previous research efforts on this subject. The search comprised all publications found on this topic in PubMed and ScienceDirect and their bibliographies were screened as well. The data extracted from the literature included parasite species, archaeological sites and dates, the methods applied and the results of the studies. There were no exclusions related to publication dates or languages. Methodological approaches to the identification of protozoaAlthough macroscopic examinations of lesions are generally limited to making observations of body preservation and the presence of specific landmarks, this technique is the most direct way of approaching disease in archaeological remains. For example, Chagas disease was diagnosed based on an altered large intestinal tract in a pre-Columbian mummy and later confirmed via molecular biological methods (Dittmar et al. 2003). However, this finding was exceptional, as the majority of infectious diseases will not be detected using such methodology. Consulting historical documents provides an indirect method for approximating protozoan infections. By reviewing medical documents, autopsy reports and original death certificates recorded by court physicians, Gino Fornaciari et al. (2010a, b) reconstructed the medical history of one of the most influential families of the Italian Renaissance, the Medici (Nerlich et al. 2012).In a similar manner, the origin of leishmaniasis in the Americas was discussed based on ethno-historical documents and anthropomorphic representations on Mochica ceramics (huacos) showing lesions similar to those found in mucous leishmaniasis (Altamirano-Enciso et al. 2003).Microscopy has been the traditional method for parasite identification in paleoparasitological analyses and the first protozoa found in fossilised faeces (coprolites) were described using this technique (Pizzi & Schenone 1954...

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Evidence of intestinal parasites of dinosaurs

Cited by 86 publications

References 15 publications

The Feeding Habits of Mesosauridae

The Feeding Habits of Mesosauridae

Evolutionary History of Terrestrial Pathogens and Endoparasites as Revealed in Fossils and Subfossils

Studies on protozoa in ancient remains - A Review

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