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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Parasitology

Protospirura muricola Gedoelst, 1916 (Spiruridae) in eastern spiny mice (Acomys dimidiatus): more than a decade of stability in frequency distributions of worm burdens, and evidence for both frequent low-dose and clumped transmission

  • Jerzy M. Behnke1
  • Joseph A. Jackson2
  • Anna Bajer3
  • Jolanta Behnke-Borowczyk4
  • Eman M.E. Mohallal5
  • Francis Gilbert1
5 affiliations
  1. 1School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, UK
  2. 2School of Science, Environment and Engineering, University of Salford, Salford, UK
  3. 3Department of Eco-Epidemiology of Parasitic Diseases, Institute of Developmental Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw . Poland
  4. 4Department of Entomology and Forest Pathology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
  5. 5Department of Animal Physiology, Desert Research Centre, El Matareya, Cairo, Egypt
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Abstract

We examined the frequency distributions of worm burdens and worm biomass of the dominant gastric nematode, Protospirura muricola, of eastern spiny mice (Acomys dimidiatus) surveyed at 4-year intervals over a period of 12 years in two montane wadis in St. Kathrine's Protectorate in S. Sinai, Egypt. Whilst the frequency distribution of worm burdens differed significantly between the mice from the 2 wadis, variation between years was not significant among mice from each wadi. The frequency distribution of P. muricola worm burdens did not differ significantly between the sexes, despite female mice carrying significantly higher worm burdens, but showed a marked difference between juvenile and mature mice. The biomass of P. muricola carried by individual mice varied considerably, with two mice from Wadi Gharaba carrying biomasses of over 1 gm, representing over 2.5% of total body weight. Biomass showed significant positive covariation with worm burdens, and heavy biomass and worm burdens were most likely among the older mature female mice. The frequency distribution of individual worm weights indicated that frequent low-dose transmission was common, with rarer instances of higher-dose, package transmission from insect vectors of this parasite.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{behnke2026protospirura,
  title = {{Protospirura muricola Gedoelst, 1916 (Spiruridae) in eastern spiny mice (Acomys dimidiatus): more than a decade of stability in frequency distributions of worm burdens, and evidence for both frequent low-dose and clumped transmission}},
  author = {Jerzy M. Behnke and Joseph A. Jackson and Anna Bajer and Jolanta Behnke-Borowczyk and Eman M.E. Mohallal and Francis Gilbert},
  journal = {Parasitology},
  year = {2026},
  month = jul,
  doi = {10.1017/s0031182026102492},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1017/s0031182026102492},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Protospirura muricola Gedoelst, 1916 (Spiruridae) in eastern spiny mice (Acomys dimidiatus): more than a decade of stability in frequency distributions of worm burdens, and evidence for both frequent low-dose and clumped transmission
AU  - Jerzy M. Behnke
AU  - Joseph A. Jackson
AU  - Anna Bajer
AU  - Jolanta Behnke-Borowczyk
AU  - Eman M.E. Mohallal
AU  - Francis Gilbert
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/07/23
JO  - Parasitology
DO  - 10.1017/s0031182026102492
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1017/s0031182026102492
AB  - We examined the frequency distributions of worm burdens and worm biomass of the dominant gastric nematode, Protospirura muricola, of eastern spiny mice (Acomys dimidiatus) surveyed at 4-year intervals over a period of 12 years in two montane wadis in St. Kathrine's Protectorate in S. Sinai, Egypt. Whilst the frequency distribution of worm burdens differed significantly between the mice from the 2 wadis, variation between years was not significant among mice from each wadi. The frequency distribution of P. muricola worm burdens did not differ significantly between the sexes, despite female mice carrying significantly higher worm burdens, but showed a marked difference between juvenile and mature mice. The biomass of P. muricola carried by individual mice varied considerably, with two mice from Wadi Gharaba carrying biomasses of over 1 gm, representing over 2.5% of total body weight. Biomass showed significant positive covariation with worm burdens, and heavy biomass and worm burdens were most likely among the older mature female mice. The frequency distribution of individual worm weights indicated that frequent low-dose transmission was common, with rarer instances of higher-dose, package transmission from insect vectors of this parasite.
SN  - 0031-1820
SN  - 1469-8161
ER  -