Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T18:48:51.053Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effects of mermithid parasitism on the haemolymph composition of the larval blackflies Prosimulium mixtum/fuscum and Simulium venustum

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

R. Gordon ,
W. J. Condon ,
W. J. Edgar  and
Sally J. Babie
R. Gordon
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St John's, Newfoundland, Canada
W. J. Condon
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St John's, Newfoundland, Canada
W. J. Edgar
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St John's, Newfoundland, Canada
Sally J. Babie
Affiliation:
Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St John's, Newfoundland, Canada
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Haemolymph of larval blackflies Prosimulium mixtum/fuscum and Simulium venustum parasitized by the mermithid nematode Neomesomermis flumenalis was compared with that of non-parasitized hosts with respect to protein, amino acid and carbohydrate composition. The mermithid depleted most protein fractions in a non-selective manner in both host species. In P. mixtum/fuscum, the levels of most amino compounds were reduced by mermithid parasitism, but these metabolites were approximately evenly divided into three categories (decreased, increased, unaffected by parasitism) in S. venustum. The mermithid caused a significant decrease of haemolymph glucose levels in both host species but did not affect blood trehalose concentrations. These effects of parasitism are discussed in relation to the nematode's nutritional requirements.

Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 77 , Issue 3 , December 1978 , pp. 367 - 374
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1978

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Bailey, C. H., Gordon, R. & Mokry, J. (1974). Procedure for mass collection of mermithid postparasites (Nematoda: Mermithidae) from larval blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae). Canadian Journal of Zoology 52, 660–1.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Condon, W. J. (1976). Some aspects of the host–parasite relations of Newfoundland black. flies and their mermithid parasites. M.Sc. thesis. Memorial University of Newfoundland.Google Scholar
Condon, W. J. & Gordon, R. (1977). Some effects of mermithid parasitism on the larval blackflies Prosimulium mixtum/fuscum and Simulium venustum. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 29, 56–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davis, B. J. (1964). Disc electrophoresis. II. Method and application to human serum proteins. Annals of the New York Academy of Science 121, 404–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gordon, R., Ebsary, B. A. & Bennett, G. F. (1973). Potentialities of mermithid nematodes for the biocontrol of blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae) – a review. Experimental Parasitology 33, 226–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gordon, R. & Webster, J. M. (1971). Mermis nigrescens: physiological relationship with its host, the adult desert locust Schistocerca gregaria. Experimental Parasitology 29, 66–79.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gordon, R. & Webster, J. M. (1972). Nutritional requirements for protein synthesis during the parasitic development of the entomophilic nematode Mermis nigrescens. Parasitology 64, 161–72.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gordon, R., Webster, J. M. & Hislop, T. G. (1973). Mermithid parasitism, protein turnover and vitellogenesis in the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria Forskal. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 46B, 575–93.Google Scholar
Lewis, D. J. & Bennett, G. F. (1973). The blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae) of insular New. foundland I. Distribution and bionomics. Canadian Journal of Zoology 51, 1181–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rutherford, T. A. & Webster, J. M. (1974). Transcuticular uptake of glucose by the entomophilic nematode, Mermis nigrescens. Journal of Parasitology 60, 804–8.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rutherford, T. A. & Webster, J. M. (1976). Effects of the nematode Mermis nigrescens on some chemical components of the insect hosts' hemolymph. Proceedings of the 1st International Colloquium on Invertebrate Pathology, pp. 272–5. Kingston, Ontario.Google Scholar
Rutherford, T. A., Webster, J. M. & Barlow, J. S. (1977). Physiology of nutrient uptake by the entomophilic nematode Mermis nigrescens (Mermithidae). Canadian Journal of Zoology 55, 1773–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thong, C. H. S. & Webster, J. M. (1975). Effects of Contortylenchus reversus (Nematoda: Sphaerulariidae) on hemolymph composition and oocyte development in the beetle Dendroctonus pseudotsugae (Coleoptera: Scolytidae). Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 26, 91–8.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wood, D. M., Peterson, B. V., Davies, D. J. & Gyorkos, H. (1963). The blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae) of Ontario. Part U. Larval identification, with descriptions and illustrations. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Ontario 93, 99–129.Google Scholar