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[Background]: During the last decades, attempts have been made to understand the molecular epidemiology of Sarcoptes scabiei, and to detect and clarify the differences between isolates from different hosts and geographic regions. Two main phenomena have been described: (i) host-taxon derived-Sarcoptes mite infection in European wild animals (revealing the presence of three separate clusters, namely herbivore-, carnivore- and omnivore-derived Sarcoptes populations in Europe) and (ii) prey-to-predator Sarcoptes mite infection in the Masai Mara ecosystem., [Results]: Using one multiplex of 9 microsatellite markers and Sarcoptes mite samples from sympatric Pyrenean chamois, red deer, red fox and Iberian wolf, different population structure analyses revealed concordance with the host-taxon law described for wild animals in Europe, with two main host-derived Sarcoptes mite populations, herbivore- and carnivore-derived. Surprisingly, Iberian wolf derived Sarcoptes populations had the highest genetic diversity among the other populations, including two different subpopulations: one similar to the herbivore-derived Sarcoptes populations, and another similar to carnivore (fox)-derived Sarcoptes mite population., [Conclusions]: The host-taxon effect in wild animals is still supported with the maintenance of carnivore- and herbivore-derived Sarcoptes clusters’ separation in analyzed mites. However, this phenomenon could be modified with the inclusion of a large predator as wolf in the present work, revealing prey-to-predator Sarcoptes mite infection between the studied host-taxa and suggesting the importance of wolf's immune system for explaining the high variability reported in C. lupus derived mites. Further studies of host diet, behavior and movement, and regarding the role played by its immune system, would be of great help to clarify interactions between the two hypotheses, host-taxon and prey-to-predator., This is a contribution to the agreement between CSIC and Principado de Asturias. The research was partially supported by RNM-6400, Proyecto de Excelencia (Junta de Andalucia, Spain), Project RTA 2011-00087-00-00 (INIA), and Juan de la Cierva Grant to Dr S. Alasaad.

The present study examined sequence variability in a portion of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (pcox1) and NADH dehydrogenase subunits 4 and 5 (pnad4 and pnad5) among 39 isolates of Fasciola spp., from different hosts from China, Niger, France, the United States of America, and Spain; and their phylogenetic relationships were re-constructed. Intra-species sequence variations were 0.0–1.1% for pcox1, 0.0–2.7% for pnad4, and 0.0–3.3% for pnad5 for Fasciola hepatica; 0.0–1.8% for pcox1, 0.0–2.5% for pnad4, and 0.0–4.2% for pnad5 for Fasciola gigantica, and 0.0–0.9% for pcox1, 0.0–0.2% for pnad4, and 0.0–1.1% for pnad5 for the intermediate Fasciola form. Whereas, nucleotide differences were 2.1–2.7% for pcox1, 3.1–3.3% for pnad4, and 4.2–4.8% for pnad5 between F. hepatica and F. gigantica; were 1.3–1.5% for pcox1, 2.1–2.9% for pnad4, 3.1–3.4% for pnad5 between F. hepatica and the intermediate form; and were 0.9–1.1% for pcox1, 1.4–1.8% for pnad4, 2.2–2.4% for pnad5 between F. gigantica and the intermediate form. Phylogenetic analysis based on the combined sequences of pcox1, pnad4 and pnad5 revealed distinct groupings of isolates of F. hepatica, F. gigantica, or the intermediate Fasciola form irrespective of their origin, demonstrating the usefulness of the mtDNA sequences for the delineation of Fasciola species, and reinforcing the genetic evidence for the existence of the intermediate Fasciola form

The present investigation examined the prevalence and abundance of bronchopulmonary nematodes in 213 randomly hunted Iberian ibexes (Capra pyrenaica) (87 females and 126 males) in the Sierra Nevada mountain range in Spain between 2003 and 2006. Post mortem examination revealed an overall prevalence of 72% for adult nematodes (Cystocaulus ocreatus 44%, Muellerius capillaris 44%, Protostrongylus sp. 40%, and Dictyocaulus filaria 4%). The abundances were 13.45 ± 3.97, 5.18 ± 2.49, 6.36 ± 2.16, and 2.27 ± 0.46, respectively. Protostrongylid adults showed similar infection rates, which were statistically different from that of D. filaria. 20% of the examined Iberian ibexes were infected by three protostrongylid nematodes species, 24% of C. pyrenaica were affected by two protostrongylid species, while infestations with only one protostrongylid species were detected in 20% of the examined animals. The overall prevalence of larvae nematodes in the examined animals was 100%, and the overall abundance (number of the first stage larvae per gram) was 86.45 ± 20.63. There was a high correlation between the two sets of data (adults and larvae). Results of the present investigation provided foundation for the effective control of bronchopulmonary nematode infection in Iberian ibex. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Real time quantitative PCR (qPCR) is one of the key technologies of the post-genome era, with clear advantages compared to normal end-point PCR. In this paper, we report the first qPCR-based assay for the identification of Fasciola spp. Based on sequences of the second internal transcribed spacers (ITS-2) of the ribosomal rRNA gene, we used a set of genus- specific primers for Fasciola ITS-2 amplification, and we designed species-specific internal TaqMan probes to identify F. hepatica and F. gigantica, as well as the hybrid ‘intermediate’ Fasciola. These primers and probes were used for the highly specific, sensitive, and simple identification of Fasciola species collected from different animal host from China, Spain, Niger and Egypt. The novel qPCR-based technique for the identification of Fasciola spp. may provide a useful tool for the epidemiological investigation of Fasciola infection, including their intermediate snail hosts