Skip to content
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
immunology and microbiology
The Pathophysiology, Ecology and Epidemiology of Haemonchus contortus Infection in Small Ruminants
Advances in Parasitology, Volume 93, Year 2016
Notification
URL copied to clipboard!
Description
The parasitic nematode Haemonchus contortus occurs commonly in small ruminants, and it is an especially significant threat to the health and production of sheep and goats in tropical and warm temperate zones. The main signs of disease (haemonchosis) relate to its blood-feeding activity, leading to anaemia, weakness and frequently to deaths, unless treatment is provided. Due to the high biotic potential, large burdens of H. contortus may develop rapidly when environmental conditions favour the free-living stages, and deaths may occur with little prior warning. More chronic forms of haemonchosis, resulting in reduced animal production and eventually deaths, occur with smaller persistent infections, especially in situations of prolonged, poor nutrition. The global distribution of the main haemonchosis-endemic zones is consistent with the critical requirements of the egg and larval stages of H. contortus for moisture and moderate to relatively warm temperatures, but the seasonal propensity for hypobiosis (inhibition of the fourth-stage larvae within the host) largely explains the common, though sporadic, outbreaks of haemonchosis in arid and colder environments. The wide climatic distribution may also reflect the adaptation of local isolates to less favourable ecological conditions, while an apparent increase in the prevalence of outbreaks in environments not previously considered endemic for haemonchosis - especially cold, temperate zones - may be attributable to climatic changes. Although the risk of haemonchosis varies considerably on a local level, even where H. contortus is endemic, the extensive range of ecological investigations provides a sound basis for predictions of the relative geographical and seasonal risk in relation to climatic conditions. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd.
Authors & Co-Authors
Besier, R. Brown
Australia, Perth
Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia
Kahn, Lewis Phillip
Australia, Armidale
University of new England Australia
Sargison, Neil Donald
United Kingdom, Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh
Van Wyk, J. A.
South Africa, Pretoria
University of Pretoria
Statistics
Citations: 169
Authors: 4
Affiliations: 4
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1016/bs.apar.2016.02.022
ISSN:
0065308X
Research Areas
Environmental
Food Security
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study