2003 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Study of Baylisascaris procyonis larva migrans : Pathological and parasitological analysis and development of serological diagnosis.
Project/Area Number |
13460137
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Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
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Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
Section | 一般 |
Research Field |
Applied veterinary science
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Research Institution | Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine |
Principal Investigator |
FURUOKA Hidefumi OBIHIRO UNIVERSITY, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, 畜産学部, 助教授 (60238665)
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Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
赤尾 信明 東京医科歯科大学, 大学院・医歯学総合研究科, 講師 (00126559)
KAMIYA Haruo HIROSAKI UNIVERSITY, MEDICINE, PROFESSOR, 医学部, 教授 (70002079)
SATO Hiroshi HIROSAKI UNIVERSITY, MEDICINE, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, 医学部, 講師 (90211945)
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Project Period (FY) |
2001 – 2003
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Keywords | Baylisascaria procyonis / Larva migrans / Serodiagnosis / Pathology / Parasitology |
Research Abstract |
Larva migrans caused by the common raccoon ascarid, Baylisascaris procyonis, is a zoonotic disease of critical importance in North America. We encountered the first proven outbreak of this disease in Japan in domestic rabbits in a small wildlife park. In this park, raccoons had been kept for 9 years, and one raccoon was donated to the park by a pet owner 8 weeks prior to the occurrence of an outbreak in rabbits. Circumstantial evidence indicates that the donated raccoon is the likely source of this outbreak. Also, we investigated the details of the central nervous lesion in the rabbits affected with B.procyonis larva migrans in Japan. In this study, we demonstrated ascarid larvae in only eight out of 23 animals diagnosed as B.procyonis larva migrans. Since it is not always possible to detect the larvae, the possibility of B.procyonis larva migrans must be given serious consideration to the characteristic lesions. Also, B.procyonis causes a severe retinal lesion in humans. The lesion is termed as diffuse unilateral subacute neuroretinitis (DUSN). To understand the pathogenesis of B.procyonis in gerbils, we inoculated the embryonated eggs of B.procyonis into Mongolian gerbils, and monitored their fundi with an ophthalmoscope. Histopathological examination revealed perivasculitis in the optic disk region, inflammatory proliferation of the pigment cells, and vitreitis in most cases. These findings were similar to those in human cases of DUSN, suggesting that gerbils might be a useful model for understanding the pathogenesis of B.procyonis infection in humans.
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