Molecular detection of Oxyspirura larvae in arthropod intermediate hosts

Abstract

To determine potential intermediate hosts of Oxyspirura petrowi, a common nematode eyeworm of wild gallinaceous birds, various arthropod species including red harvester ants, beetles, wood cockroaches, crickets, grasshoppers, katydids, and desert termites were screened for the presence of O. petrowi using specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primers targeting the internal transcribed spacer 2 region (ITS2) of the eyeworm ribosomal deoxyribonucleic acid (rDNA). This is the first study to investigate the intermediate hosts of O. petrowi utilizing molecular techniques. We determined 38% (13/34) of the cockroaches, 27% (3/11) of the crickets, and 23% (68/289) of the grasshoppers which were positive for O. petrowi. Identifying potential intermediate hosts of O. petrowi is essential to better understanding the epizoology of the eyeworm’s transmission mechanics and to controlling infections in wild gallinaceous birds.

Pruritic Cutaneous Nematodiasis Caused by Avian Eyeworm Oxyspirura Larvae, Vietnam

“…For transmission, Oxyspirura species require arthropod intermediate hosts, such as cockroaches, crickets, and grasshoppers, to develop into infective third-stage larvae (5,14). The patient in our case affirmed he eats grasshoppers and crickets, which are potential intermediate hosts of the nematode and could have been the route of transmission.…”

Life-cycle of Oxyspirura petrowi (Spirurida: Thelaziidae), an eyeworm of the northern bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus)

“…However, Kistler et al [26] questioned the suitability of crickets as an intermediate host of O. petrowi due to low infections rates (16.6%) when crickets were fed gravid female worms, but others have questioned the suitability of B. magna as an intermediate host, as it is not a documented food source for bobwhite [7]. Additionally, a study using molecular techniques found a different cricket species, Gryllus texensis , to be a potential intermediate host but not B. magna [29]. Therefore, the house cricket is a suitable candidate to observe the infection dynamics of O. petrowi in a laboratory setting, as it is likely that these would be generally representative of those present in wild intermediate hosts while also providing a specimen that is easy to maintain in the laboratory.…”

“…It is known that O. petrowi also requires an intermediate host and multiple insect species have been identified in this capacity, including the differential grasshopper ( Melanoplus differentialis ), wood cockroach ( Parcoblatta spp.) and red-legged grasshopper ( Melanoplus femurrubrum ) [25]. Furthermore, pioneering research by Kistler et al [26] reported the plains lubber grasshopper ( Brachystola magna ) as an intermediate host, with O. petrowi larvae being found in the body cavity of various specimens.…”

“Weight of evidence” as a tool for evaluating disease in wildlife: An example assessing parasitic infection in Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus)

“…petrowi and A . pennula ( Branson, 2014 ; Kistler et al, 2016a ; Almas et al, 2018 ; Henry et al, 2018 , 2020 ), which coupled with high bobwhite populations ( TPWD, 2019 ), created an environment rich in both intermediate and definitive hosts, an ideal situation for the proliferation of parasites ( Sures and Streit, 2001 ; Liccioli et al, 2014 ). This may have facilitated the transmission of parasites leading to the increased infection levels of both O .…”