title: Morphological differentiation among three Thelazia species (Nematoda: Thelaziidae) by scanning electron microscopy.
abstract: Thelaziasis is an ocular infection of several mammals caused by nematodes of the genus Thelazia (Spirurida, Thelaziidae). The adults live in the lachrymal ducts and conjunctival sacs of infected animals, and transmission occurs by means of different species of muscids. T. rhodesi, T. skrjabini, and T. gulosa affect mainly cattle, inducing conjunctivitis, keratitis, and ocular discharge. This article describes the morphological features of adult T. rhodesi, T. skrjabini, and T. gulosa by scanning electron microscopy and highlights the most relevant differences for their identification.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, P.O. Box 1177, Urmia, Iran. sorayanaem@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Soraya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Naem
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D017205:Spirurida Infections / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary; D013802:Thelazioidea / Q000145:classification* / Q000648:ultrastructure*