Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada
Giardia and Cryptosporidium are protozoan parasites known to cause enteric disease in terrestrial mammals, reptiles and birds. Compared to the abundance of surveys that have examined Giardia and Cryptosporidium in terrestrial wildlife species, very few studies on either parasite have been undertaken...
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ftmurdochunivall:oai:alma.61MUN_INST:11136118330007891 2024-09-15T18:10:55+00:00 Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada Appelbee, Amber Thompson, Andrew 2006 pdf https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/esploro/outputs/doctoral/Giardia-and-Cryptosporidium-in-pinnipeds-from/991005543750507891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825190007891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825200007891 eng eng 991005543750507891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/esploro/outputs/doctoral/Giardia-and-Cryptosporidium-in-pinnipeds-from/991005543750507891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825190007891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825200007891 alma:61MUN_INST/bibs/991005543750507891 Open text Doctoral Thesis 2006 ftmurdochunivall 2024-08-15T00:52:49Z Giardia and Cryptosporidium are protozoan parasites known to cause enteric disease in terrestrial mammals, reptiles and birds. Compared to the abundance of surveys that have examined Giardia and Cryptosporidium in terrestrial wildlife species, very few studies on either parasite have been undertaken on marine mammal species. Studies of shellfish, marine waters and water treatment plants clearly indicate that marine ecosystems are contaminated with Giardia and Cryptosporidium. In spite of these data the extent to which these parasites extend into the marine environment and how they may impact on marine mammal health remains largely unknown. The aim of this thesis was to expand our current knowledge of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in the marine environment and in particular, the harp and hooded seal populations of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. A large-scale serological survey of a large cohort of serum samples clearly show that, as is the case with terrestrial mammals, Giardia is ubiquitous in the marine environment. Sera positive for G. duodenalis-specific IgG were detected in almost all cetacean and pinniped species examined, and from all regions of the St. Lawrence estuary, Gulf of St. Lawrence and from the Canadian arctic. In the case of harp and hooded seals, they are actively infected with Assemblage A, a zoonotic strain of G. duodenalis and represent a previously unrecognised contributor to the overall environmental parasite burden. The discovery of this variant of Giardia in a phocid host, along with their susceptibility to infection with terrestrial strains of both Giardia and Cryptosporidium, highlight the potential zoonotic transmission from seals to humans through the consumption of uncooked intestines and general animal handling during research or hunting practices. The identification of this zoonotic strain of Giardia in seals also demonstrates the potential for anthropogenic activities such as human sewage treatment and agriculture runoff to be a significant source of contamination for marine ... Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis hooded seal Murdoch University Research Portal |
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Open Polar |
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Murdoch University Research Portal |
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ftmurdochunivall |
language |
English |
description |
Giardia and Cryptosporidium are protozoan parasites known to cause enteric disease in terrestrial mammals, reptiles and birds. Compared to the abundance of surveys that have examined Giardia and Cryptosporidium in terrestrial wildlife species, very few studies on either parasite have been undertaken on marine mammal species. Studies of shellfish, marine waters and water treatment plants clearly indicate that marine ecosystems are contaminated with Giardia and Cryptosporidium. In spite of these data the extent to which these parasites extend into the marine environment and how they may impact on marine mammal health remains largely unknown. The aim of this thesis was to expand our current knowledge of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in the marine environment and in particular, the harp and hooded seal populations of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. A large-scale serological survey of a large cohort of serum samples clearly show that, as is the case with terrestrial mammals, Giardia is ubiquitous in the marine environment. Sera positive for G. duodenalis-specific IgG were detected in almost all cetacean and pinniped species examined, and from all regions of the St. Lawrence estuary, Gulf of St. Lawrence and from the Canadian arctic. In the case of harp and hooded seals, they are actively infected with Assemblage A, a zoonotic strain of G. duodenalis and represent a previously unrecognised contributor to the overall environmental parasite burden. The discovery of this variant of Giardia in a phocid host, along with their susceptibility to infection with terrestrial strains of both Giardia and Cryptosporidium, highlight the potential zoonotic transmission from seals to humans through the consumption of uncooked intestines and general animal handling during research or hunting practices. The identification of this zoonotic strain of Giardia in seals also demonstrates the potential for anthropogenic activities such as human sewage treatment and agriculture runoff to be a significant source of contamination for marine ... |
author2 |
Thompson, Andrew |
format |
Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
author |
Appelbee, Amber |
spellingShingle |
Appelbee, Amber Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada |
author_facet |
Appelbee, Amber |
author_sort |
Appelbee, Amber |
title |
Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada |
title_short |
Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada |
title_full |
Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada |
title_fullStr |
Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
Giardia and Cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada |
title_sort |
giardia and cryptosporidium in pinnipeds from the gulf of st. lawrence, canada |
publishDate |
2006 |
url |
https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/esploro/outputs/doctoral/Giardia-and-Cryptosporidium-in-pinnipeds-from/991005543750507891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825190007891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825200007891 |
genre |
hooded seal |
genre_facet |
hooded seal |
op_relation |
991005543750507891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/esploro/outputs/doctoral/Giardia-and-Cryptosporidium-in-pinnipeds-from/991005543750507891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825190007891 https://researchportal.murdoch.edu.au/view/delivery/61MUN_INST/12136118320007891/13136825200007891 alma:61MUN_INST/bibs/991005543750507891 |
op_rights |
Open |
_version_ |
1810448509201022976 |