title: Dogs may be a reservoir host for Angiostrongylus costaricensis.
abstract: Angiostrongylus costaricensis is a parasitic nematode of wild rodents. Several other vertebrate species including man may become infected by ingestion of the third stage larvae produced by the intermediate hosts, usually slugs from the family Veronicellidae. There is a report of the diagnosis of abdominal angiostrongyliasis in Canis familiaris with lesions resembling those found in human disease. As a preliminar evaluation of the adequacy of a canine model for pathogenetic studies, a dog was inoculated with 75 L3 of A. costaricensis. Infection was established and fist stage larvae were found in feces up to 88 days post infection, sometimes in very large numbers (9.5 x 10(4) L1/g). No clinical manifestations or significant lesions were detected. These are indications that dog may play a role as a reservoir host for A. costaricensis.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Patologia de Passo Fundo, Passo Fundo, RS, Brasil.
authors.forename: Rubens
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: Aventino A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Agostini
authors.forename: Sérgio Machado
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Porto
authors.forename: Augusto José Oliveira
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Olivaes
authors.forename: Susana L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Branco
authors.forename: Júlia Pasquali
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Genro
authors.forename: Antonio Carlo
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Laitano
authors.forename: Rafael Lucyk
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Maurer
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Graeff-Teixeira
mesh_terms: D000801:Angiostrongylus / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000662:veterinary*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D004285:Dogs; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D006801:Humans; D017206:Strongylida Infections / Q000662:veterinary*