Aelurostrongylus abstrusus infection of domestic and wild cats in south Brazil

Resumo

Aelurostrogylus abstrusus is a helminthic pathogen that infects the respiratory tract of felids after the ingestion of intermediate or paratenic hosts. The present paper assesses A. abstrusus infection in domestic and wild cats in south of Brazil. Fecal samples from 97 domestic cats and from seven wild cats (Puma concolor, Puma yagouaroundi and Leopardus tigrinus) were tested using sedimentation and flotation techniques. The prevalence of first-stage larvae was 2.1% (2/97) in domestic cats, and Puma yagouaroundi was the only wild cat that turned out to be positive for this lungworm. This is the first report of A. abstrusus in Puma yagouaroundi in Brazil. The identification of this parasite raises a red flag about the presence of infected intermediate and/or paratenic hosts and about the importance of this parasitic disease even in the absence of respiratory clinical signs. The analysis of fecal samples is then suggested for the detection of A. abstrusus.