Eurytrema procyonis

Eurytrema procyonis

<p align="CENTER"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>Eurytrema procyonis</b></i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b> Denton, 1942</b></span></span></p> <p align="CENTER"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>(Figure 2-32)</b></span></span></p> &nbsp; <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>ETYMOLOGY:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eury</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> = wide and </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>trema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> = trematode along with </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> = for the original raccoon host.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>SYNONYMS:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema vulpis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Stunkard, 1947; </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Concinnum procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> of Schell, 1985.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>HISTORY:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> This fluke was originally described from specimens recovered form the pancreatic duct of a raccoon in Texas, USA (Denton, 1942). Burrows and Lillis (1960) discovered the same parasite in the pancreatic ducts of two cats in New Jersey, USA.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> This species of </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> has only been reported from the eastern United States of America. In a survey of 290 cats from St. Louis, Missouri, USA, 31 were found to be infected with this parasite (Fox</span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i> et al</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">., 1981). A survey of 36 cats within a 250 mile radius of Fort Knox, Kentucky, USA, reveal that 5 of these cats had pancreatic flukes (Sheldon, 1966).</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>LOCATION IN HOST:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Pancreatic duct; in one of the cases described by Burrows and Lillis, the cat had over 300 of the flukes in the pancreatic duct and an additional 67 flukes in the bile ducts and gall bladder.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>PARASITE IDENTIFICATION:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> This fluke is 1.7 to 2.5 mm in length, and 0.73 to 1.3 mm wide at mid body. There is a well developed ventral sucker that is about one-fourth of the body length towards the posterior end, and the testes are large, paired, and just posteriad to the ventral sucker. There is a cirrus present behind the genital pore that opens anterior to the ventral sucker. The eggs are 45 to 53 µm long by 29 to 36 µm wide.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>LIFE CYCLE:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> The life cycle of this trematode is only incompletely described. Embryonated eggs are eaten by a land snail, </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Mesodon thyroidus</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">. The cercariae develop within sporocysts within these snail, and when developed, the cercariae have very short tails. The sporocysts, containing numerous cercariae, are extruded from the snail. Viable cercariae are still present within the extruded sporocysts after 5 days. It is believed that the second intermediate host is most likely an arthropod (Denton, 1944).</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>CLINICAL PRESENTATION AND PATHOGENESIS:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Cats infected can develop pancreatic atrophy and fibrosis (Anderson</span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i> et al.</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">, 1987); the inflammatory pancreatic disease can lead to clinical signs of weight loss and intermittent vomiting. The pancreatic ducts become thickened, and the main duct can be enlarged with numerous flukes. Infected cats may show a reduction in the protein and carbonate content of pancreatic fluid, and an overall reduction in the volume of fluid produced. (Fox</span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i> et al</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">., 1981).</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>TREATMENT:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Probably praziquantel, but not reported.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>EPIZOOTIOLOGY:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> It is not known how cats become infected. It is most likely that they are accidentally ingesting some arthropod that supports the development of the metacercarial stage. </span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>HAZARD TO OTHER ANIMALS:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Raccoons and foxes are quite often infected with this parasite. </span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>HAZARD TO HUMANS:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> There have been no records as to the infection of human beings with this parasite. If a person were to ingest the arthropod host, they could perhaps develop an infection.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>CONTROL/PREVENTION:</b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> This cannot be done until the life cycle has been elucidated. One of the naturally infected cats was a four-and-one-half year old spayed, female American indoor-outdoor cat (Anderson</span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i> et al</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">. 1987). It is not known how this cat became infected or how the infection could have been prevented.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>REFERENCES:</b></span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Anderson WI, Georgi ME, Car BD. 1987. Pancreatic atrophy and fibrosis associated with </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> in a domestic cat. Vet Rec 120:235-236.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Burrows RB, Lillis WG. 1960. </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Denton, 1942 (Trematoda: dicrocoelidae), from the domestic cat. J Parasitol 45:810-812.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Denton JF. 1942. </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">, n. sp., (Trematodea: Dicrocoelidae), form the raccoon, Procyon lotor. Proc Helm Soc Wash 9:31-32.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Denton JF. 1944. Studies on the life history of </span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Denton, 1942. J Parasitol 30:277-286.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Fox JN, Mosley JG, Vogler GA, Ausitn JL, Reber HA. 1981. Pancreatic function in domestic cats with pancreatic fluke infection. JAVMA 178:58-60.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sheldon WG. 1966. Pancreatic flukes (</span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;">) in domestic cats. JAVMA 148: 251-253.</span></span></p> <p align="JUSTIFY"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Figure 2-32. </b></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Eurytrema</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>procyonis</i></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> recovered form the pancreatic duct of a cat in New Jersey. Note the lateral vitellaria, the testes that are anterior to midbody, the large anterior and ventral suckers, and the uterus filled with eggs that extends posteriad between the vitellaria to fill the body with dark eggs.</span></span></p>