Korean J Parasitol.  2007 Jun;45(2):157-161. 10.3347/kjp.2007.45.2.157.

Apodemus agrarius as a new definitive host for Neodiplostomum seoulense

• Chai JY
• Park JH
• Guk SM
• Kim JL
• Kim HJ
• Kim WH
• Shin EH
• Klein TA
• Kim HC
• Chong ST
• Song JW
• Baek LJ

• KMID: 1720543
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3347/kjp.2007.45.2.157

Abstract

A total of 1,496 rodents and insectivores were live-trapped at Yeoncheon-gun (n = 351), Paju-shi (804), and Pocheon-gun (343), Gyeonggi-do (Province), and examined for intestinal helminths, including Neodiplostomum seoulense, seasonally from December 2004 to September 2005. Six species of rodents, including Apodemus agrarius (1,366), Mus musculus (32), Micronytus fortis (28), Eothenomys regulus (9), Micronys minutus (6), and Cricetulus triton (3), and 1 species of insectivores Crocidura lasiura (54) were collected. A total of 321 adult N. seoulense were collected from 19 (1.4%) A. agrarius. The worm burden ranged from 1 to 101 per A. agrarius (mean; 16.9). No N. seoulense was observed in other rodent or insectivore species examined. The infection rate during autumn (4.5%) was higher than those during spring (0.8%), summer (0.8%), and winter (0.5%). The average number of N. seoulense in infected A. agrarius was the highest in spring (66.0 specimens), followed by autumn (15.2), winter (4.5), and summer (3.3). This study first confirms that A. agrarius is a natural definitive host for N. seoulense, and demonstrates that the infection rates and intensities vary seasonally and geographically.

Keyword

Neodiplostomum seoulense; wild rodent; Apodemus agrarius; prevalence; worm burden; Gyeonggi-do

MeSH Terms

Animals
Arvicolinae/parasitology
Cricetinae
Cricetulus/parasitology
Feces/parasitology
Geography
Insectivora/parasitology
Intestine, Small/parasitology
Korea/epidemiology
Mice
Murinae/*parasitology
Rodent Diseases/*epidemiology
Seasons
Trematoda/*isolation & purification
Trematode Infections/epidemiology/*veterinary