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Mol Phylogenet Evol 2022 Jun 20;174:107556. Epub 2022 Jun 20.

Department of Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, 1664 N. Virginia Street, Reno, NV 89557, USA.

The avian feather louse Philopterus-complex (Phthiraptera: Ischnocera: Philopteridae) currently contains 12 genera that have been grouped together because of shared morphological characteristics. Although previously lumped into a single genus (Philopterus), more recent morphological treatments have separated the group into several different genera. Here we evaluate the status of these genera using DNA sequence data from 118 ingroup specimens belonging to ten genera in the Philopterus-complex: Australophilopterus Mey, 2004, Cinclosomicola Mey 2004, Clayiella Eichler, 1940, Corcorides Mey, 2004, Mayriphilopterus Mey, 2004, Paraphilopterus Mey 2004, Philopteroides Mey 2004, Philopterus Nitzsch, 1818, Tyranniphilopterus Mey, 2004, and Vinceopterus Gustafsson, Lei, Chu, Zou, and Bush, 2019. Read More

An Acad Bras Cienc 2022 17;94(2):e20210337. Epub 2022 Jun 17.

Universidade Federal Fluminense, Instituto Biomédico, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Rua Professor Hernani Pires de Melo, 101, Centro, 24210-130 Niterói, RJ, Brazil.

Pediculosis mainly affects school-age children worldwide. The aim of this study was to identify and analyze the knowledge of the parents and guardians of children in elementary schools in Niterói, Brazil, regarding pediculosis. Questionnaires were applied to 237 guardians of children at five 1-5 grade municipal schools. Read More

Mol Ecol 2022 Jun 21. Epub 2022 Jun 21.

Department of Ecosystems in the Barents Region, Svanhovd Research Station, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Norway.

Host-specialist parasites of endangered large vertebrates are in many cases more endangered than their hosts. In particular, low host population densities and reduced among-host transmission rates are expected to lead to inbreeding within parasite infrapopulations living on single host individuals. Furthermore, spatial population structures of directly-transmitted parasites should be concordant with those of their hosts. Read More

Zoonoses Public Health 2022 Jun 21. Epub 2022 Jun 21.

Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, región Tuxpan, Universidad Veracruzana, Veracruz, Mexico.

Lice represent one of the most neglected group of vectors worldwide, particularly in Latin America. Records of bacterial agents related to head lice are non-existent in this region of the continent. Many of these communities often do not have adequate access to public services and/or health protection. Read More

Sci Rep 2022 Jun 20;12(1):10356. Epub 2022 Jun 20.

Institute of Aquaculture, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK.

The pyrethroid deltamethrin (DTM) is used to treat Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) against salmon louse (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) infestations. However, DTM resistance has evolved in L. salmonis and is currently common in the North Atlantic. Read More

Immunol Res 2022 Jun 9. Epub 2022 Jun 9.

Unité de Recherche en Pharmaco-Immunologie (UR-EPI), Université et CHU de La Réunion (Site Félix Guyon), 97400, Saint-Denis, France.

Dis Aquat Organ 2022 Jun 9;149:121-132. Epub 2022 Jun 9.

School of Marine Sciences, Murray Hall, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USA.

In the larval stage of the parasitic copepod Lepeophtheirus salmonis, the free-living copepodid must locate and settle on a salmonid host. Chemosensory mechanisms play a role in determining whether a potential host is suitable for attachment, yet the full suite of chemical cues and resulting behavioral mechanisms used are unknown. After maturing, pre-adult female and adult male salmon lice aggregate upon salmonid hosts for reproduction. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2022 Jun 8;15(1):196. Epub 2022 Jun 8.

Latin American Group for the Study of Ornithodoros-borne Borrelioses (Grupo Latinoamericano Para el Estudio de Borreliosis Transmitidas Por Ornithodoros [GLEBTO]), Bogotá, Colombia.

Relapsing fever group Borrelia (RFGB) are motile spirochetes transmitted to mammalian or avian hosts through the bite of hematophagous arthropods, such as soft ticks (Argasidae), hard ticks (Ixodidae) and the human clothing lice. RFGB can infect pets such as dogs and cats, as well as birds, cattle and humans. Borrelia recurrentis, B. Read More

Epilepsy Behav Rep 2022 20;19:100553. Epub 2022 May 20.

Department of Medicine, Austin Health, University of Melbourne and Department of Neuroscience, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

This article was prepared to outline the article collection submitted on behalf of Lega Italiana Contro l'Epilepsia, or LICE, for the 50th anniversary of the founding of the ILAE Italian Chapter, and provides a brief summary of the history, with its landmark achievements and challenges. LICE is a multidisciplinary, inclusive, educational, informative and multifaceted organization. Initially in 1955 and then formally in 1972, LICE was born in Milano, with the mission to devote itself to people suffering with epilepsy and by promoting appropriate treatment and care, integration into society, to promote and pursue all kinds of activities designed to achieve those aims. Read More

Indian J Med Res 2021 06;154(6):898

Department of Ophthalmology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin, P.R. China.

Life Sci 2022 May 30;304:120677. Epub 2022 May 30.

Department of Morphology and Genetics, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo, SP 04023-900, Brazil; Biosciences Graduate Program, Institute of Biosciences, Letters and Exact Sciences, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Sao Jose do Rio Preto, SP 15054-000, Brazil. Electronic address:

Aims: In this study we evaluated the effect of pharmacological treatment with AnxA1-derived peptide Ac in an experimental model of toxicity induced by cisplatin.

Main Methods: Male rats were divided into Sham (control), Cisplatin (received intraperitoneal injections of 10 mg/kg/day of cisplatin for 3 days) and Ac (received intraperitoneal injections of 1 mg/kg/day of peptide, 15 min before cisplatin) groups.

Key Findings: After 6 h of the last dose of cisplatin, an acute inflammatory response was observed characterized by a marked increase in the number of neutrophils and GM-CSF, IL-β, IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-α plasma levels. Read More

CMAJ Open 2022 Apr-Jun;10(2):E476-E482. Epub 2022 May 31.

Section of Infectious Diseases (Boodman, Wuerz, Keynan), Department of Internal Medicine, Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba; Departments of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (Boodman, Lagacé-Wiens, Bullard, Stein, Keynan) and Community Health Sciences (Wuerz), Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba; Shared Health (Lagacé-Wiens); National Microbiology Laboratory (Lindsay, Dibernardo); Cadham Provincial Laboratory (Bullard, Stein), Winnipeg, Man.

Background: are gram-negative bacilli not identified by routine bacterial culture. The objectives of this study were to review the results of all serologic testing for ordered in Manitoba, Canada, and to review cases with positive test results among adults to assess species identification, risk factors, clinical manifestations and outcomes.

Methods: This retrospective study included all serologic tests ordered in Manitoba and performed at the National Microbiology Laboratory, Winnipeg, from Jan. Read More

Pathogens 2022 May 22;11(5). Epub 2022 May 22.

National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Changping Liuzi 5 C, Beijing 102206, China.

Vector-borne pathogens are mainly transmitted by blood-feeding arthropods such as ticks, mosquitoes, fleas, lice, mites, etc. They pose a significant threat to animal and human health due to their worldwide distribution. Although much work has been performed on these pathogens, some neglected areas and undiscovered pathogens are still to be further researched. Read More

Infect Dis Poverty 2022 May 26;11(1):58. Epub 2022 May 26.

Research Center for Parasites and Vectors, College of Veterinary Medicine, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, Hunan, China.

Background: Human pediculosis is caused by hematophagous lice, which are transmitted between individuals via direct and/or indirect contact. Despite the public health importance of louse infestation, information concerning the global burden of pediculosis and the epidemiological landscape of louse-borne diseases is limited. The aim of this review was to summarize the biology, epidemiology, diagnosis, and control of lice infestation in humans. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2022 05 26;16(5):e0010399. Epub 2022 May 26.

University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

We describe a case of Bartonella quintana endocarditis in an 11-year-old child from Northern Manitoba, Canada. This case demonstrates the neglected endemicity of B. quintana in Northern Canada and highlights the need for improved case finding and elucidation of specific risk factors for B. Read More

Electron Mark 2022 May 21:1-13. Epub 2022 May 21.

Department of Strategy and Management, NHH Norwegian School of Economics, Helleveien 30, 5045 Bergen, Norway.

In this paper, we investigate the development of standards for technologies and work practices in a digital platform ecosystem. Standards are needed for technical and organizational compatibility across the actors' different systems, technologies, data, and business processes. However, little is known about how actors achieve common standards in collaborative ecosystems where a clear platform leader is missing. Read More

Acta Trop 2022 Aug 22;232:106503. Epub 2022 May 22.

The Center for Geographic Medicine and Tropical Diseases, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan 52621, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel.

Head louse infestations caused by Pediculus humanus capitis (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae) are a public health problem in developing and developed countries worldwide. Head to head contact is by far the most common mode of lice transmission. In March 2020, WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic. Read More

J Fish Dis 2022 May 25. Epub 2022 May 25.

Institute of Marine Research, Bergen, Norway.

The effect of different intensities of the ectoparasitic salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) on stress, growth and the expression of immune and wound healing transcripts in the skin of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) was investigated. Lice infection success and survival were similar at the chalimus and preadult stage in the low and high dose group, but infection success and survival were significantly lower in the high than in the low dose group at the adult stage. The expression of investigated transcripts was not correlated to lice intensities, but several of them were significantly differently expressed locally in the skin at the site of lice attachment in infected fish compared to controls. Read More

Evol Appl 2022 May 30;15(5):773-789. Epub 2022 Mar 30.

School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences University College Cork Cork Ireland.

Males and females are often subject to different and even opposing selection pressures. When a given trait has a shared genetic basis between the sexes, sexual conflict (antagonism) can arise. This can result in significant individual-level fitness consequences that might also affect population performance, whilst anthropogenic environmental change can further exacerbate maladaptation in one or both sexes driven by sexual antagonism. Read More

Sci Rep 2022 May 18;12(1):8288. Epub 2022 May 18.

Lund University, Ecology Building, Sölvegatan 37, 22362, Lund, Skåne, Sweden.

Freshwater ecosystems are under multiple threats in modern times such as water extraction for human consumption, industries and agricultural activities, water contamination and habitat destruction for example. At the same time the biodiversity of these ecosystems are often poorly studied, especially in arid countries such as Iran. In this work, we study one of the ecologically important members of Iranian freshwater fauna, freshwater crab species of the genus Potamon. Read More

Environ Toxicol Chem 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.

Chemicals used in sea lice management strategies in salmonid aquaculture include the avermectin class of compounds that can accumulate and persist in the sediments underneath salmon farms and directly impact nontarget benthic fauna. The effects of sediment organic carbon content and chemical residence time (CRT) on the lethal and sublethal toxicity of emamectin benzoate (EB; formulation: Slice®) and ivermectin (purified) and a combination of both were examined in two benthic invertebrates, the amphipod Eohaustorius estuarius and the polychaete Neanthes virens. In both species, increased sediment organic carbon content significantly reduced lethal toxicity, a modulation that was more pronounced for ivermectin and combination exposures. Read More

Parasite Epidemiol Control 2022 Aug 2;18:e00252. Epub 2022 May 2.

Research Center for Health Sciences, Institute of Health, Department of Biology and Control of Disease Vectors, School of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

Background: Human head louse, De Geer, 1767 (Anoplura: Pediculidae), is one of the most frequent ectoparasites infesting worldwide. Reduced sensitivity to treatment due to genetic mutations, in particular knockdown resistance () (or target site insensitivity) allele, has led to this infestation prevalence. Molecular characterization of this resistance has a crucial impact on selecting appropriate treatment protocol. Read More

Sci Rep 2022 May 14;12(1):7995. Epub 2022 May 14.

Department of Biological Sciences, SLRC-Sea Lice Research Centre, University of Bergen, Pb. 7803, 5020, Bergen, Norway.

Little is known about glandular proteins secreted from the skin- and blood-feeding ectoparasite salmon louse (Lepeophtheirus salmonis). The labial gland has ducts extending into the oral cavity of the lice, and the present study aimed to identify novel genes expressed by this gland type and to investigate their role in modulation of host parameters at the lice feeding site. Five genes associated with labial gland function were identified and named Lepeophteirus salmonis labial gland protein (LsLGP) 1-4 and 1 like (LsLGP1L). Read More

J Investig Med High Impact Case Rep 2022 Jan-Dec;10:23247096221098339

Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, UCLA at Kern Medical Center, Bakersfield, CA, USA.

Coccidioidomycosis (CM) is a fungal infection endemic to the southwestern United States with a wide range of clinical presentations depending on the infected organ systems. Most infections are asymptomatic. Coccidioidomycosis causes a primary pulmonary infection and when symptoms occur, they most often resemble community-acquired pneumonia. Read More

NASN Sch Nurse 2022 May 12:1942602X221099282. Epub 2022 May 12.

MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC.

Pediculosis (head lice) infections are one of the more sensitive issues that may involve the school nurse. In the 3- to 11-year-old age group in the United States, head lice infections are common and can elicit anxiety in students, parents, and school personnel. Head lice do not transmit any communicable diseases and therefore exclusion from school and "no nit" policies are not warranted. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2022 May 10;15(1):131. Epub 2022 May 10.

Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (NOVA), Rua da Junqueira 100, 1349-008, Lisbon, Portugal.

Background: Dipilidiosis is a parasitic disease caused by the tapeworm Dipylidium caninum. Fleas and, less frequently, lice act as an intermediate host, and their ingestion is required for infection to occur. While the disease mainly affects domestic and wild carnivores, it is also considered a zoonotic disease, with most human cases reported in children. Read More

Int J Parasitol 2022 May 6. Epub 2022 May 6.

School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Deiniol Road, Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2UW, UK. Electronic address:

Parasites, similar to all other organisms, time themselves to environmental cues using a molecular clock to generate and maintain rhythms. Chronotherapeutic (timed treatment) techniques based on such rhythms offer great potential for improving control of chronic, problematic parasites. Fish lice are a key disease threat in aquaculture, with current control insufficient. Read More

Int J Trichology 2022 Mar-Apr;14(2):55-59. Epub 2022 Apr 4.

Department of Dermatology, Venereology and Leprosy and Community Medicine, Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, Puducherry, India.

Background: Pediculosis is a common ectoparasitic infestation in children. There are different treatment modalities that have been used in the treatment of pediculosis capitis from time immemorial, each with their own shortcomings. Increasing emergence of resistance to permethrin has led to the lookout for newer alternatives. Read More

Biomed Res Int 2022 20;2022:8202610. Epub 2022 Apr 20.

Laboratory of Cardiovascular Pharmacology, School of Medical Sciences, University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, Brazil.

Here, we report the acute effects of aerobic (AER), resistance (RES), and combined (COM) exercises on blood pressure, central blood pressure and augmentation index, hemodynamic parameters, and autonomic modulation of resistant (RH) and nonresistant hypertensive (NON-RH) subjects. Twenty participants (10 RH and 10 NON-RH) performed three exercise sessions (i.e. Read More

Ann Parasitol 2022 ;68(1):185-189

Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Autónoma University of Madrid, Darwin Street 2, Madrid. 28049, Spain.

The reed bunting is a passerine bird of the Palearctic region, some subspecies suffer a decline in their populations. Four species of lice have been cited in reed bunting, but lice studies have not been carried out in the Iberian Peninsula. Between 2018 and 2020 a wintering population of the reed bunting is sampled in the center of the Iberian Peninsula through mist nets. Read More