A Brugia species infecting rabbits in the northeastern United States.
Brugia sp. microfilariae were observed in more than 60% of wild rabbits collected on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. The microfilariae measured 294-344 microns in length and had the characteristic subterminal and terminal nuclei observed in other Brugia microfilariae. The microfilaria is similar to those described for Brugia leporis in rabbits in Louisiana. This may be the Brugia species responsible for 21 documented cases of human infection in the northeastern United States.
Division of Parasitic Diseases, Centers for Disease Control, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Atlanta, Georgia 30333.
M L
ML
Eberhard
S R
SR
Telford
A
A
Spielman
D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild / Q000469:parasitology; D002009:Brugia / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004199:Disease Vectors; D004605:Elephantiasis, Filarial / Q000469:parasitology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008404:Massachusetts; D008842:Microfilariae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D011817:Rabbits / Q000469:parasitology*; D015047:Zoonoses