Authors : Yong Zhu, Huan Ji, Jin-Hua Li, Dong-Po Xia, Bing-Hua Sun, Yu-Rui Xu and Randall C. Kyes
Abstract: The gullet worm, Gongylonema pulchrum Molin, 1857, a genus of nematodes belonging to the Superfamily Spiruroidea is a zoonosis that occurs in the upper digestive tract of various mammals around the world. The hosts of this nematode are only reported in few non-human primates and infestation has not previously been reported in non-human primates in China. Researchers collected 76 fresh fecal samples of Tibetan macaques during Nov. 2009 to Dec. 2009 and March 2010 to April 2010 using washing precipitation and saturated saline flotation method for detection and identification of intestinal parasites in macaques. The incidence of G. pulchrum infection was high to 31.58% which was the highest incidence rate among the 9 species intestinal parasites detected in Tibetan macaques. This research provides the first data concerning high incidence of G. pulchrum in wild Tibetan macaques in China which means enriched the host of the G. pulchrum in non-human primates. The data would serve as a baseline for comparative assessments of disease risks, especially in this well-known ecotourism site at Mt. Huangshan, China.
Yong Zhu, Huan Ji, Jin-Hua Li, Dong-Po Xia, Bing-Hua Sun, Yu-Rui Xu and Randall C. Kyes, 2012. First Report of the Wild Tibetan Macaque (Macaca thibetana) as a New Primate Host of Gongylonema pulchrum with High Incidence in China. Journal of Animal and Veterinary Advances, 11: 4514-4518.