Studies on Brugia pahangi in inbred hamsters. 1. Susceptibility of inbred GN and APG hamsters.

ABSTRACT

The susceptibility of inbred GN and APG hamsters to Brugia pahangi infection was studied. Male GN hamsters infected subcutaneously with 100 infective larvae showed 100% patency with the average prepatent period of 69 days. The average microfilarial density was 148/40 c.mm at 26 weeks and reached 1,000/40 c.mm at days 280. The rate of adult recovery was as high as 36%. Most worms were recovered from the heart and lungs (46%) and testes (40%). The male GN hamster-B. pahangi model could be a good substitution for the jird-B. pahangi model. Female GN and male APG hamsters seemed to be less susceptible than male GN hamsters. However, they could still be a better alternative to outbred hamsters due to their high rates of patency (92 and 100%), relatively high microfilarial densities (31 and 39/40 c.mm at 26 weeks) and reasonable rates of adult recovery (23.5 and 17.2%).