The construction of the Diama dam on the Senegal river, the Manantali dam on the Bafing river, Mali and the ensuing ecological changes have led to a massive outbreak of Schistosoma mansoni in Northern Senegal, associated with high intensity of infections, due to intense transmission, and the creation of new foci of S. haematobium. Data on the vectorial capacity of Biomphalaria pfeifferi from Nd...

Schistosomiasis mansoni is not just a physical disease, but is related to social and behavioural factors as well. Snails of the Biomphalaria genus are an intermediate host for Schistosoma mansoni and infect humans through water. The objective of this study is to classify the risk of schistosomiasis in the state of Minas Gerais (MG). We focus on socioeconomic and demographic features, basic sani...

INTRODUCTION A number of studies have attempted to predict the effects of climate change on schistosomiasis risk. The importance of considering different species of intermediate host snails separately has never previously been explored. METHODS An agent-based model of water temperature and Biomphalaria pfeifferi population dynamics and Schistosoma mansoni transmission was parameterised to two...

The correct identification of Biomphalaria oligoza, B. orbignyi and B. peregrina species is difficult due to the morphological similarities among them. B. peregrina is widely distributed in South America and is considered a potential intermediate host of Schistosoma mansoni. We have reported the use of the polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the in...

The biological control of freshwater snail hosts of schistosome parasites has attracted much attention in recent years, but the efficiency of such bio-control agents has rarely been tested outside laboratory conditions. The present paper attempts to summarize the present status of biological control of snails intermediate hosts, to indicate some major gaps in our knowledge of this subject, espe...

BACKGROUND Fasciolosis in livestock is a crucial concern in the globe, mainly due to its impact on human health. The aim of this study was to determine the rate of infection with Fasciola gigantica (Cobbold, 1855) larvae in the field-collected snails of Lymnaea auricularia (Linnaeus, 1785) from northwestern Iran using a molecular approach. METHODS A total of 6,759 pond snails were collected f...

This study of infection of southern Australian land snails with Brachylaima cribbi metacercariae has shown that all commonly encountered native and introduced snails are susceptible second intermediate hosts. The range of infected snails is extensive with metacercariae-infected snails being present in all districts across southern Australia. C. virgata has the highest average natural metacercar...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the endemic characteristics of Metorchis orientalis (M. orientalis)in the Huainan area, Anhui province, China. METHODS The first-intermediate host, second-intermediate host and reservoir hosts were collected, and the endemic characteristics of M. orientalis were examined through field investigation and artificial infection. RESULTS Investigation was completed in 89 ...

Fasciolosis, caused by the trematode Fasciola hepatica, is a zoonosis of economic importance in livestock that is emerging as a chronic disease in humans. The intermediate hosts are lymnaeid snails, in which diagnosis of infection is traditionally based on cercarial shedding, tissue sectioning and crushing. We developed a PCR assay for the sensitive and specific detection of F. hepatica in fiel...

Freshwater snails of the genus Biomphalaria are important intermediate snail hosts for the widespread transmission of schistosomiasis in humans. This chronic and debilitating disease remains one of the most intractable public health concerns in 74 developing countries, infecting more than 200 million people. Prevalence of schistosomiasis is difficult to estimate, but according to the World Heal...