Heartworm and seal louse: Trends in prevalence, characterisation of impact and transmission pathways in a unique parasite assembly on seals in the North and Baltic Sea.

ABSTRACT: The ectoparasitic seal louse, Echinophthirius horridus infects harbour (Phoca vitulina) and grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) in the North and Baltic Sea. The endoparasitic heartworm Acanthocheilonema spirocauda parasitizes the right heart and blood vessels of harbour seals. The complete lifecycle of the heartworm is not entirely understood although the seal louse is assumed to serve as vector for its transmission. Knowledge about the impact of both parasite species on host health are scarce. In this study, necropsy data and archived parasites of harbour and grey seals in German waters were analysed to determine long-term seal louse (SLP) and heartworm prevalence (HWP) from 2014 to 2021. Histology, microbiology and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were applied o

SUBMITTER: Herzog I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10818207 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature