Brugia beaveri Ash and Little, 1964
This worm was originally described from the lymph nodes, skin, and carcass of the raccoon (Procyonlotor) in Louisiana, USA (Ash and Little, 1964). It was later shown to infect cats experimentally (Harbut and Orihel, 1995) and natural infections in cats in the USA with Brugia spp. are expected to include this species. Orihel & Eberhard (1998) summarize the human infections with zoonotic Brugia species in lymph tissue have been observed and note that there have been some 30 cases of human infection in the United States. The agent is probably Brugia beaveri of the raccoon, although Brugia lepori of the rabbit or some other undescribed species may be responsible.
REFERENCES:
Ash LR, Little MD. 1964. Brugiabeaveri sp. n. (Nematoda: Filarioidea) from the raccoon (Procyonlotor) in Louisiana. J Parasitol 50:119-123.
Orihel TC, Eberhard ML. 1998. Zoonotic filariasis. Clin Microbiol Rev 11:366-381.
Harbut CL, Orihel. 1995. Brugiabeaveri: microscopic morphology in host tissues and observations on its life history. J Parasitol 81:239-243.