title: Sarcocystis kirkpatricki n. sp. (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) in muscles of raccoons (Procyon lotor) from Illinois.
abstract: Sarcocysts of Sarcocystis kirkpatricki n. sp. (Apicomplexa: Sarcocystidae) are described from the skeletal and heart musculature of 66 (66%) of 100 raccoons (Procyon lotor) from Illinois. Histologic examination of muscle tissues from tongue, diaphragm, esophagus, and heart revealed that 61%, 47%, 32%, and 2%, respectively, contained sarcocysts of this species. Juvenile raccoons (less than 1 yr old) were more likely (P less than 0.01) to have sarcocysts in the tissues examined (52/60 or 87%) than were adults (14/40 or 35%). Histologically, sarcocysts in the 4 tissues were similar: the cyst wall was 2-3 microns thick, PAS negative, and had fine hairlike surface projections; interior septa were indistinct. Ultrastructurally, sarcocyst walls had short (mean = 2.8 microns), straight to sloping, villuslike projections. Longitudinal tubular filaments inside these projections extended from the tips to the base, where they terminated in a granular electron-dense layer of the primary cyst wall. Thin septa were within the sarcocysts. Feeding experiments utilizing dogs and cats as potential definitive hosts were negative.
authors.affiliation: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Animal Parasite Research Laboratory, Auburn, Alabama 36831.
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Snyder
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Sanderson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Toivio-Kinnucan
authors.forename: B L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Blagburn
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D003964:Diaphragm / Q000469:parasitology; D004285:Dogs; D004947:Esophagus / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D006321:Heart / Q000469:parasitology; D007087:Illinois / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D009132:Muscles / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D015995:Prevalence; D011821:Raccoons / Q000469:parasitology*; D012522:Sarcocystis / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D012523:Sarcocystosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D014059:Tongue / Q000469:parasitology