Rickettsial infections of midgut cells are not associated with susceptibility of Glossina morsitans centralis to Trypanosoma congolense infection.
Teneral and 30-day old non-teneral Glossini morsitans centralis, from a laboratory-bred colony, were fed on a goat infected with Trypanosoma congolense clone IL 1180. They were then maintained on an uninfected rabbit, and dissected on day 30 after the infected feed. The midgut infection rates were 38.1% and 8.1%, with the mature infection rates of 28.7% and 4.3%, respectively. Electron microscopical examination revealed the presence of rickettsia-like organisms (RLOs) within the mycetomes and the midgut epithelial cells of all the teneral and non-teneral tsetse examined; the RLOs being more numerous in the older tsetse. Also, when the infected feed was given to teneral tsetse, maintained as above and dissected 30 days later, RLOs were observed in the tsetse with mature and immature T. congolense infections, as well as in those tsetse which completely lacked the trypanosomes. It appears that susceptibility of the laboratory reared G.m. centralis to T. congolense infection was not associated with RLOs within the midgut epithelial cells.
Moloo
S K
SK
International Laboratory for Research on Animal Diseases (ILRAD), Nairobi, Kenya.
Shaw
M K
MK
D000818:Animals; D004064:Digestive System / Q000382:microbiology; D007303:Insect Vectors / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology*; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000502:physiology*; D014348:Trypanosoma congolense / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D014370:Tsetse Flies / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology*