Phylogeny, morphology, and haplotypic distribution of Biomphalaria straminea populations from the five geographic regions of Brazil.

Biomphalaria straminea is one of the three snails that act as the intermediate hosts of Schistosoma mansoni and is responsible for maintaining high rates of schistosomiasis in some areas of northeastern Brazil. The principal morphological characteristic of B. straminea is the marked vaginal wrinkling, although it is also present in congeneric species, a group known as the B.

Nematodes of concern to public and animal health associated with the invasive snail Achatina fulica, in Sergipe, Northeastern Brazil.

The giant African land snail Achatina fulica is known to be the intermediate host of a number of nematode species that are prejudicial to human and veterinary health, being also an agricultural and urban pest. The present study investigated the presence of nematodes in A. fulica and other terrestrial mollusks in 24 municipalities of Sergipe State, northeastern of Brazil, in the dry and rainy seasons.

Public parks in the city of Rio de Janeiro, southeast Brazil, and the risk of parasitosis transmission by freshwater gastropods.

Urban parks are not only important for the wellbeing of the human population, but are also widely considered to be potentially important sites for the conservation of biodiversity. However, they may offer risk parasitic infections, such as schistosomiasis and fascioliasis, which are both transmitted by freshwater snails. The present study investigated the occurrence of freshwater gastropods in urban parks of the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, and their possible infection by helminths of medical-veterinary importance.

The Zoonotic and the Veterinary Parasite Infecting Terrestrial Gastropods from Urban Areas of Macapá, Brazilian Amazon Region.

Metastrongyloidea includes nematodes that parasitize mammals, mainly infecting their respiratory and cardiovascular systems, and are responsible for emerging zoonosis in the world. Terrestrial mollusks are their main intermediate hosts, with few exceptions. Here we present the results of a malacological survey to know the distribution of in Macapá, Amapá, in the Brazilian Amazon region, after the report of a case of eosinophilic meningitis in 2018.

A Structural Analysis of Host-Parasite Interactions in (Giant African Snail) Infected with .

is a nematode parasite that resides in the pulmonary arteries of rodents, serving as its definitive hosts. The life cycle involves several species of non-marine gastropods as intermediate hosts, and the African giant snail is considered one of the most important around the world. Experimental data concerning .

FioSchisto's expert perspective on implementing WHO guidelines for schistosomiasis control and transmission elimination in Brazil.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes schistosomiasis as one of the Neglected Tropical Diseases targeted for global elimination in the 2030 Agenda of the Sustainable Development Goals. In Brazil, schistosomiasis mansoni is considered a public health problem, particularly prevalent among vulnerable populations living in areas with poor environmental and sanitary conditions. In 2022, the WHO published a Guideline encompassing recommendations to assist national programs in endemic countries in achieving morbidity control, eliminating schistosomiasis as a public health problem, and advancing towards interrupting transmission.

Sampling collections and metadata of planorbidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda) in Brazil: a comprehensive analysis of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute's Mollusk Collection from 1948 to 2023.

Planorbidae comprises approximately 40 genera of freshwater gastropods, including roughly 250 species. Among the Planorbidae subfamilies, the significance of Planorbinae is due to its genus , whose species are intermediate hosts of the trematode Sambon, 1907, which causes schistosomiasis in humans and animals. Here, we present the analysis of the dataset of Planorbidae housed in the Collection of Mollusks of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute, with a special focus on species.

Parasitism of terrestrial gastropods by medically-important nematodes in Brazil.

An ample variety of parasitic associations are found between mollusks and nematodes, in which the mollusks may act as intermediate, paratenic or definitive hosts. Some free-living nematodes, in particular those of the order Rhabditida, are also found frequently in terrestrial mollusks. The present study reviews the results of the parasitological testing on samples of terrestrial mollusks conducted at the Brazilian National Reference Laboratory for Schistosomiasis and Malacology between 2008 and 2021.

The giant African snail Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich, 1822 as an intermediate host of Aelurostrongylus abstrusus (Railliet, 1898) in the Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil.

Aelurostrongylus abstrusus is a metastrongilid nematode that causes feline aelurostrongylosis. The adult life stage parasitizes the lungs of wild and domestic felids. Terrestrial mollusks act as its intermediate host, and birds, amphibians, and small mammals act as paratenic hosts.

Feasibility of near-infrared spectroscopy for species identification and parasitological diagnosis of freshwater snails of the genus Biomphalaria (Planorbidae).

Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) has been applied in epidemiological surveillance studies of insect vectors of parasitic diseases, such as the Dengue's mosquitoes. However, regarding mollusks, vectors of important worldwide helminth diseases such as schistosomiasis, fascioliasis and angiostrongyliasis, NIRS studies are rare. This work proposes to establish and standardize the procedure of data collection and analysis using NIRS applied to medical malacology, i.

Diversity of non-marine gastropods of the Fiocruz Atlantic Forest Biological Station and adjacents urban areas, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.

Our main objective was to perform a preliminary survey of the non-marine gastropods at the Estação Biológica Fiocruz Mata Atlântica (EFMA) and its adjacent urban areas, also considering samples from other localities of the Parque Estadual da Pedra Branca received as donation, in Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. Infection by larval helminths of medical and veterinary importance was also investigated in 348 specimens of five freshwater species and two specimens of the terrestrial species Achatina fulica. In all, 584 samples of molluscs from 34 collection sites were obtained.

First report of the nematode using molluscs as natural intermediate hosts, based on morphology and genetic markers.

The life cycles of many parasitic nematodes include terrestrial gastropods as intermediate hosts. Over the past few decades, a number of cases of parasitism between molluscs and medically-important nematodes have been reported in Brazil, in particular, those involving the invasive giant African gastropod, , and zoonoses caused by the nematodes and , the etiological agents of neuroangiostrongyliasis and abdominal angiostrongyliasis, respectively. In the present study, larvae found infecting , , and , from two localities in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro were characterized using light and scanning electron microscopy, and sequences of the 18S rRNA and MT-CO1 genes.

Field Application of NIR Spectroscopy for the Discrimination of the Species That Are Intermediate Hosts of in Brazil.

Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) is a spectroscopic technique that evaluates the vibrational energy levels of the chemical bonds of molecules within a wavelength range of 750-2,500 nm. This simple method acquires spectra that provide qualitative and quantitative data on the chemical components of the biomass of living organisms through the interaction between the electromagnetic waves and the sample. NIRS is an innovative, rapid, and non-destructive technique that can contribute to the differentiation of species based on their chemical phenotypes.

An integrative study of the invasive jumping-snail Ovachlamys fulgens (Gastropoda, Helicarionidae) in Rio de Janeiro and its fast spreading in Southeastern and Southern Brazil.

The Japanese invasive jumping snail Ovachlamys fulgens is a pest of ornamental plants and an intermediate host of a nematode that causes eosinophilic meningitis. We expand its distribution to eight municipalities from Rio de Janeiro State, and one locality from the Paraná State, and generated for the first time partial sequences of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene for Brazilian populations. External morphology, reproductive system, shell, radula, and jaw were also analyzed and described.

Infection by Angiostrongylus cantonensis in both humans and the snail Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica in the city of Macapá, in the Amazon Region of Brazil.

In January and February 2019, a malacological survey was conducted in the area surrounding the residence of a 12-year-old child that had contracted cerebral angiostrongyliasis in the municipality of Macapá, capital of the Amapá State, northern Brazil. The serological examination was positive for Angiostrongylus cantonensis infection, the principal etiological agent of this parasitosis. A sample of 54 molluscs was artificially and individually digested for parasitological analysis, containing 38 specimens of Achatina fulica, nine specimens of Bulimulus tenuissimus and seven specimens of Sarasinula linguaeformis.

Physiology and immunity of the invasive giant African snail, Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica, intermediate host of Angiostrongylus cantonensis.

As one of the most successful invasive land snail species, Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich, 1822 has achieved wide global distribution, particularly in (sub)tropical regions, with further dispersal likely due to climate change. This species of giant African snails (up to 17 cm shell length) is a pest that has extensive negative impact on agriculture and can serve as vector for several parasites, including Angiostrongylus cantonensis, a nematode parasite that causes (human) eosinophilic meningitis, an emergent disease. Investigation showed that A.

Prevalence of Infection of Biomphalaria glabrata by Schistosoma mansoni and the risk of urban Schistosomiasis mansoni in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.

Introduction: Biomphalaria glabrata is considered to be responsible for the incidence of schistosomiasis in Brazil. Therefore, surveillance of areas where schistosomiasis is prevalent is fundamental for public health planning. This study was aimed to evaluate B.

Compatibility Polymorphism Based on Long-Term Host-Parasite Relationships: Cross Talking Between and the Trematode From Endemic Areas in Brazil.

Sympatric snail populations have been kept in the laboratory since the isolation of the parasite from the field. To evaluate the influence of the intermediate host in the infectivity of , this allopatric strain was compared to two sympatric strains, from different geographical origins, and with different time of maintenance in the laboratory. Snail-trematode compatibility was accessed for a total of nine possible combinations (three snail populations, three schistosome strains), using different charges of parasite: 1, 5, 10, and 15 miracidia/snail.

Geographical distribution of intermediate hosts of Schistosoma mansoni in the states of Paraná, Minas Gerais, Bahia, Pernambuco and Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, 2012-2014.

Objective: to describe the geographical distribution of intermediate hosts of Schistosoma mansoni in five Brazilian states.

Methods: this was a descriptive cross-sectional study; municipalities were selected in the states of Paraná (78), Minas Gerais (120), Bahia (82), Pernambuco (51) , and Rio Grande do Norte (98), for the period 2012 to 2014; these municipalities were chosen because they did not have current records of the presence of snails vectores de S. mansoni.

Snail transmitters of schistosomiasis and other mollusks of medical and economic importance at the Simplício Queda Única Hydroelectric Plant, Southeast Brazil.

Introduction: This paper presents the results of an extensive survey of freshwater mollusks in the Simplício Queda Única Hydroelectric Development area, Southeast Brazil.

Methods: Mollusks were collected between 2008 and 2013. All specimens were examined for the presence of larval trematodes.

First records of molluscs naturally infected with Angiostrongylus cantonensis (Nematoda: Metastrongyloidea) in Northeastern Brazil, including new global records of natural intermediate hosts.

Human neural angiostrongyliasis is an emerging infectious disease caused by nematode Angiostrongylus cantonensis. The present study investigated the presence of Angiostrongylus spp. in terrestrial molluscs collected from the following areas in the Metropolitan Region of Aracaju, Sergipe State, Brazil: Barra dos Coqueiros, Nossa Senhora do Socorro, Sao Cristovao and Aracaju.

Effects of experimental Angiostrongylus cantonensis infection on the reproductive biology of Biomphalaria straminea and Biomphalaria tenagophila.

Eosinophilic meningoencephalitis is an endemic zoonosis in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands, but in recent years, new cases have been reported in various countries outside these regions, including Brazil, where it is considered an emerging disease. In this study, the effect of infection by the nematode Angiostrongylus cantonensis, one of the main etiologic agent of this disease, on the reproductive biology of the planorbid snails Biomphalaria straminea and B. tenagophila was investigated during the pre-patent period.

The influence of Angiostrongylus cantonensis (Nematoda, Metastrongylidae) infection on the aerobic metabolism of Biomphalaria straminea and Biomphalaria tenagophila (Mollusca, Gastropoda).

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is considered the main agent responsible for human eosinophilic meningoencephalitis. This parasite has low specificity for mollusk hosts and it can also use aquatic snails as auxiliary hosts. Studies based on the metabolic profile of Biomphalaria spp.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis infection in molluscs in the municipality of São Gonçalo, a metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: role of the invasive species Achatina fulica in parasite transmission dynamics.

The aim of this study was to analyse the infection dynamics of Angiostrongylus cantonensisin its possible intermediate hosts over two years in an urban area in the state of Rio de Janeiro where the presence ofA. cantonensis had been previously recorded in molluscs. Four of the seven mollusc species found in the study were exotic.

The Apple Snail Pomacea maculata (Caenogastropoda: Ampullariidae) as the intermediate host of Stomylotrema gratiosus (Trematoda: Stomylotrematidae) in Brazil: the first report of a mollusc host of a Stomylotrematid Trematode.

Trematodes belonging to the family Stomylotrematidae are intestinal parasites of birds. Despite the worldwide distribution and diversity of host species, the first intermediate host remains unknown. For a survey of parasites of Pomacea maculata , snails were collected from the municipality of São Vicente Férrer, state of Maranhão, northeastern Brazil.