Treatment of Trichuris suis infections in pigs with flubendazole.

A severe outbreak of Trichuris suis infection in piglets is described. Fifteen per cent of the animals died and the morbidity, characterised by weight loss and diarrhoea, was over 50 per cent. The severity of symptoms observed in naturally infected pigs was related to the number of whipworms. A chemotherapeutic trial was worked out with flubendazole mixed in food for naturally infected and artificially infected piglets. Flubendazole at 30 ppm for five consecutive days controlled the infection in the pigs. Immature T suis in artificially infected pigs were also controlled at the same dose administered for 10 consecutive days.

The biological and toxicological properties of imazalil.

1-[2-(2,4-Dichlorophenyl)-2-(2-propenyloxy)-ethyl]-1H-imidazole (imazalil) base and different salts were tested in vitro on various pathogenic fungi and bacteria; in vivo on guinea-pigs, rats and turkeys experimentally infected with dermatophytes and Candida albicans. In vitro the dermatophytes were the most sensitive. The plant-pathogenic fungi were more sensitive to the base than to the salts. The antibacterial activity was low. The in vivo antifungal activity was high for the dermatophytes and rather low for Candida. The acute, subacute and chronic toxicity studies in rats and dogs showed that imazalil wa a well tolerated substance. Ocular and dermal irritation were not seen at therapeutic doses. Fertility and reproductive capacity were not affected and embryotoxicity and teratogenicity were not seen. No mutagenic or cancerogenic potential was found.

Vapour phase activity of imazalil.

A series of in vitro experiments with imazalil is described. It is demonstrated that the compound has fungistatic, fungicidal and even sporocidal activity in the vapour phase against a wide variety of fungal species, e.g., dermatophytes, Candida albicans, and plant-pathogenic fungi. Possible practical applications are discussed.

Ketoconazole in experimental candidosis.

A relatively large number of animal models of candidosis exist in which the efficacy of antifungal substances can be evaluated. These include models of candidosis of the skin, gastrointestinal tract, genital system, and internal organs in a variety of animal species. The efficacy of ketoconazole administered orally and topically was evaluated; when given orally in relatively low doses, ketoconazole was found to be efficacious in all of the experimental models used. Scanning and transmission electron micrographs of infected tissue demonstrated the rapidity with which Candida albicans was eradicated from the host after administration of ketoconazole.

Ketoconazole -- a new broad spectrum orally active antimycotic.

Oral treatment with ketoconazole prevented and cured artificial crop candidosis of the turkey, vaginal candidosis of the rat and skin candidosis of the guinea-pig. It was also highly effective against artificial systemic candidosis of the guinea-pig and chicken as well as against dermatophytoses of the guinea-pig.

Mass control of ascariasis with single oral doses of levamisole. A controlled comparison in 3,056 subjects between three incomplete population coverages.

Ninety-, 60-, and 40-percent population coverages with levamisole 2.5 mg/kg of body weight were compared for their effects on Ascaris lumbricoides, ancylostoma, Strongyloides stercoralis, and Trichuris trichiura infections. They were shown to be effective in maintaining a reduced prevalence of A. lumbricoides in the treated subjects for 9, 6, and 3 months, respectively. Nine months after treatment, the prevalence of ascariasis was still lower than before treatment both in the levamisole and in the control subjects, regardless of the population coverage. This was probably because the egg output had been reduced. It is concluded that mass treatment with single oral doses of levamisole repeated at 3-month intervals might help control ascariasis, and that population coverages between 60 and 90% might be appropriate. No clear-cut effects against hookworms could be shown, possibly because the first follow-up examinations were performed three months after treatment. No changes in the prevalence of S. stercoralis and T. trichiura could be demonstrated. There were no adverse exp

Scanning electron microscopic observations of Cysticercus fasciolaris (=Taenia taeniaeformis) after treatment of mice with mebendazole.

The time-related topographical changes in mature cysticerci of Taenia taeniaformis induced after medication of infected mice with 250 ppm of mebendazole are described. The changes included the gradual disappearance of microtriches and progressive degeneration of the tegment resulting in an irregular surface with grooves, holes, and craterlike structures. Host cells adhered to the altered areas and the number of these cells increased when more severe changes became apparent. Finally the necrotized cysticerci, which lost their tegument completely, were almost entirely covered with adhesive host cells. A difference in the time sequence of the reported changes occurred between the scolex, the pseudoproglottids, and the bladder. This difference in susceptibility towards the drug between the three parts of the parasite in relation to the morphology of their microtrichous covering is discussed.

[Toxocariasis in calves. Recent diagnosis and treatment (author's transl)]. / Toxocarose bij kalveren. Herontdekking en behandeling.

Toxocara vitulorum, a parasite of suckling calves, was again diagnosed in Belgium in imported cattle of French origin. The infectious larvae are present in the milk and colostrum; they do not undergo further migration in the tissues of calves. This form of transmammary migration is not specific of T. vitulorum, but was also reported in S. ransomi in pigs. Treatment with levamisole at a dosage of 5 mg/kg results in complete disappearance of the worms. In addition to the cycles, the elements of a specific parasitological diagnosis are also described.

Morphological changes in cysticerci of Taenia taeniaeformis after mebendazole treatment.

The progressive micromorphological changes in Taenia taeniaeformis cysticerci, induced by a single parenteral treatment of the infected mice with mebendazole, are described. The time-related alterations concerned the tegument and tegumental cells and were successively: disappearance of microtubules, accumulation of secretory substances in the Golgi areas, decrease in number to complete loss of microtriches, "ballooning" of all tegumental cells with subsequent burst, vacuolization and degeneration of the tegument, and finally necrosis of the pseudoproglottids. Similar but less pronounced injuries were seen in the scolices, although microtubules disappeared as early as in the pseudoproglottids. Microtubules from the host tissues remained intact. The meaning of the apparent primary interference of mebendazole with the microtubular system in relation to the subsequently observed death of the cysticercoids is discussed.