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Angiostrongylus vasorum infection in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in southern Italy

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Abstract

Angiostrongylus vasorum (Nematoda: Angiostrongylidae) infection was detected at post-mortem examination in the pulmonary arteries and hearts of 34/102 (33,3%) of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from the Campania Region in southern Italy. Pathological changes consisted of granulomatous interstitial pneumonia caused by larvae and intravascular pulmonary adult nematodes. These changes confirm that angiostrongylosis infection in red foxes has a mainly chronic course, in which the infected host may disperse parasite larvae in the environment over its lifetime. Results suggest that the life cycle of A. vasorum is well established in the red fox in the Campania Region representing a potential infection risk for dogs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Section of Parasitology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy

    Mario Santoro

  2. Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Mezzogiorno, Section of Avellino, Italy

    Nicola D’Alessio & Francesca Di Prisco

  3. Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Italy

    Benedetto Neola, Brunella Restucci, Teresa B. Pagano & Vincenzo Veneziano

Authors
  1. Mario Santoro
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  2. Nicola D’Alessio
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  3. Francesca Di Prisco
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  4. Benedetto Neola
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  5. Brunella Restucci
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  6. Teresa B. Pagano
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  7. Vincenzo Veneziano
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Correspondence to Mario Santoro.

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Santoro, M., D’Alessio, N., Di Prisco, F. et al. Angiostrongylus vasorum infection in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in southern Italy. Acta Parasit. 60, 356–359 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1515/ap-2015-0050

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/ap-2015-0050

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