Publications by authors named "Abdelaziz Benhoussa"

Purpose: Studies on monogeneans parasitizing representatives of Siluriformes in Africa remain scarce and fragmentary. In order to contribute to fill this gap, we screened Heterobranchus longifilis from the Lindi River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Methods: Heterobranchus longifilis was purchased from fishermen in DR Congo, province of Tshopo, in Kisangani town, the Lindi River.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The ichthyofauna of Lake Tanganyika consists of 12 families of fish of which five belong to Siluriformes (catfishes). Studies on Siluriformes and their parasites in this lake are very fragmentary. The present study was carried out to help fill the knowledge gap on the monogeneans infesting the siluriform fishes of Lake Tanganyika in general and, more particularly, .

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The H9N2 virus continues to spread in wild birds and poultry worldwide. At the beginning of 2016, the H9N2 Avian influenza virus (AIV) was detected in Morocco for the first time; despite the implementation of vaccination strategies to control the disease, the virus has become endemic in poultry in the country. The present study was carried out to investigate the origins, zoonotic potential, as well as the impact of vaccination on the molecular evolution of Moroccan H9N2 viruses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Avian influenza (AI) is a zoonotic disease significant to both public and animal health, caused by influenza virus A, and affects domestic poultry, wild birds, and mammals including humans. Aquatic birds are considered the natural reservoir of this virus. In 2016, Morocco experienced the first occurrence of low pathogenic H9N2 avian influenza virus (AIV) in poultry; however, no cases were reported in wild birds.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The influence of age and sex on the bioaccumulation of heavy metals in Apodemus sylvaticus was studied in Merja Zerga lagoon in northern Morocco. Five trace metal elements (Zn, Pb, Cr, Cu and Fe) were quantitatively analyzed by Varian AA 240 atomic absorption spectroscopy with graphite furnace in three organs (Liver, Kidney and Heart) from animals of different age and sex. The maximum metal level of the analyzed samples was recorded in adults and was limited to 46.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Even though Gerbillinae rodents represent an important part of the mammalian fauna in North Africa, many gaps remain in our understanding of the distribution, ecology, evolution, and systematics of some lesser known species in this family. We present in this study the most recent findings on two of these species. The first species, Gerbillus simoni Lataste, 1881, is a short-tailed, small gerbil, endemic to North Africa.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Euryhaline Cichlid fish of the species Coptodon guineensis are present in different water holes situated in a dried depression in the desert in the extreme South of Morocco, the Sebkha of Imlili. A genetic survey of this population, using complete sequences of the ND2 gene (mtDNA) and sixteen microsatellite loci, revealed that the fish in the sebkha did not form a single population, but rather a metapopulation. This metapopulational structure may be regarded as good news from the point of view of the conservation of fish in the sebkha.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF