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Species Identity and Size are Associated with Rat Lungworm Infection in Gastropods

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Abstract

Angiostrongylus cantonensis, the rat lungworm, is an emerging zoonotic pathogen that cycles between definitive rat and intermediate gastropod hosts. Zoonotic infection occurs when humans intentionally or accidentally consume infectious larvae in a gastropod host, and may manifest as neuroangiostrongyliasis, characterized by eosinophilic meningitis, severe neurological impairment, and even death. Thus, the risk of A. cantonensis zoonoses may be related to the distribution of A. cantonensis larvae across gastropod hosts. We screened 16 gastropod species from 14 communities on the island of O‘ahu, Hawai‘i, USA, to characterize the distribution of A. cantonensis among species and across host size. Prevalence (proportion of the population infected) and infection intensity (density of worms in host tissue) varied among gastropod species. Prevalence also varied with gastropod host size, but this relationship differed among host species. Most host species showed a positive increase in the probability of infection with host size, suggesting that within species relatively larger hosts had higher prevalence. The density of worms in an infected snail was unrelated to host size. These results suggest that variation in A. cantonensis infection is associated with demographic structure and composition of gastropod communities, which could underlie heterogeneity in the risk of human angiostrongyliasis across landscapes.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the numerous private landowners on O‘ahu who granted access to their land. Nicole Yoneishi assisted with screening gastropod hosts. Ken Hayes confirmed the correct name for the Meghimatium species. The study was funded in part by a grant (PI: Cowie) from the Hawai‘i Department of Health to train personnel and augment capacity across State of Hawai‘i institutions, and a National Science Foundation REU-Site award (NSF DBI 1659889). Publication number SOEST-no. 11094 of the University of Hawai‘i School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology. Two anonymous reviewers improved an early version of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pacific Biosciences Research Center, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, 1993 East West Road, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA

    Matthew C. I. Medeiros & Ma Vida Echaluse

  2. Pacific Biosciences Research Center, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, 3050 Maile Way, Gilmore 408, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA

    Randi L. Rollins & Robert H. Cowie

  3. Department of Biology, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, 2538 McCarthy Mall, Edmondson 216, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA

    Randi L. Rollins

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  1. Matthew C. I. Medeiros
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Correspondence to Matthew C. I. Medeiros.

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Medeiros, M.C.I., Rollins, R.L., Echaluse, M.V. et al. Species Identity and Size are Associated with Rat Lungworm Infection in Gastropods. EcoHealth 17, 183–193 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-020-01484-x

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