Evidences against a significant role of Mus musculus as natural host for Angiostrongylus costaricensis

Abstract

Wild rodents have been described as the most important hosts for Angiostrongylus costaricensis in Central America and southern Brazil. Sinantropic rodents apparently do not play a significant role as natural hosts. A search for natural infection failed to document worms in 14 mice captured in the house of a patient with diagnosis of abdominal angiostrongylosis and experimental infection of a "wild" Mus musculus strain and groups of albino Swiss mice were carried out. Mortality was not significantly different and varied from 42% to 80% for Swiss mice and from 26% to 80% for "wild" mice. The high mortality of a "wild" M. musculus infected with A. costaricensis was very similar to what is observed with most laboratory mice strains. These data may be taken as indications that M. musculus is not a well adapted host for A. costaricensis, although susceptibility was apparently higher with "wild" populations of M. musculus as compared to Swiss strain.

Study on the Elimination of Angiostrongylus costaricensis First Stage Larvae in the Experimental Infection of Swiss Mice

“…Both from epidemiological field work and from experimental studies there are indications that the main definitive hosts for A. costaricensis are wild rodents (Tesh et al 1973, Morera 1985, GraeffTeixeira et al 1989, Santos et al 1996. Sinantropic or urban rodents, like M. musculus, Rattus norvergicus (Linnaeus, 1758) and Rattus rattus (Linnaeus, 1758) probably do not play an PO ratio important role as hosts for this metastrongylid worm, as reviewed by Santos et al (1996).…”

“…Sinantropic or urban rodents, like M. musculus, Rattus norvergicus (Linnaeus, 1758) and Rattus rattus (Linnaeus, 1758) probably do not play an PO ratio important role as hosts for this metastrongylid worm, as reviewed by Santos et al (1996). Many confirmed human infections have been detected in small towns with a rural-like enviroment, where the sinanthropic rodents may have opportunities to contact the parasite in its wild cycle.…”

“…The high albeit variable mortality is a well established feature of the experimental infection of mice strains, with the exception of C57BL/6 (Ishii & Sano 1989, Santos et al 1996. Mice manifest disease (weight loss, diarrhea, hipoactivity) and most of the deaths occur from the 4th to the 6th week ( Fig.…”

“…Wild rodents, like Sigmodon hispidus in Costa Rica and Oryzomys nigripes (Olfers, 1818) in southern Brazil, have been identified as the natural definitive hosts (Morera 1973, Graeff-Teixeira et al 1989. Sinantropic rodents, like the domestic mouse Mus musculus (Waterhouse, 1837) have not been found with natural infection and the high mortality observed in the experimental infection with A. costaricensis has been taken as one explanation for the lack of documentation of naturally infected animals (Morera 1985, Santos et al 1996. Coevolution status in parasite-host pairs has been classically expressed by direct effects of virulence of the parasite or reactivity of the host (morbidity or mortality).…”

Susceptibility and morbidity between male and female Swiss mice infected with Angiostrongylus costaricensis: Susceptibilidade e morbidade entre camundongos Swiss machos e fêmeas infectados com Angiostrongylus costaricensis

“…Although natural infection of M. musculus with A. costaricensis has never been documented 8,13,14 , experimental investigation of the immunology and biology of parasitism in abdominal angiostrongyliasis have been carried out in several strains of mice: C57BL6, BALB/c, DBA/2, and C3H/He 4 . ISHII et al 5 infected inbred strains of rats (DA, JAR-2, LOU/M, NIG-III, WBN/Kob, and Wm) and two species of wild rodents, Rattus norvegicus and R. rattus, in order to study infection susceptibility and resistance.…”