ArticleParasites & vectors2021
The seal louse (Echinophthirius horridus) in the Dutch Wadden Sea: investigation of vector-borne pathogens.
Article in Parasites & vectors, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- Rickettsiales in the WHO European Region: an update from a One Health perspective.Parasites & vectors · 2023Pooled it
- Another piece of the puzzle: analysis of Acanthocheilonema spirocauda larvae from its presumed intermediate host the seal louse (Echinophthirius horridus).Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Seal finger: a literature review.International journal of circumpolar health · 2025Review
- Global spillover of land-derived microbes to Ocean hosts: Sources, transmission pathways, and one health threats.Environmental science and ecotechnology · 2025Review
- High prevalence and low intensity of Echinophthirius horridus infection in seals revealed by high effort sampling.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Heartworm and seal louse: Trends in prevalence, characterisation of impact and transmission pathways in a unique parasite assembly on seals in the North and Baltic Sea.International journal for parasitology. Parasites and wildlife · 2024Article
- A Review of Circumpolar Arctic Marine Mammal Health-A Call to Action in a Time of Rapid Environmental Change.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Novel 3D in situ visualization of seal heartworm (Acanthocheilonema spirocauda) larvae in the seal louse (Echinophthirius horridus) by X-ray microCT.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Genetic diversity of vector-borne pathogens in spotted and brown hyenas from Namibia and Tanzania relates to ecological conditions rather than host taxonomy.Parasites & vectors · 2021Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundBelonging to the anopluran family Echinophthiriidae, Echinophthirius horridus, the seal louse, has been reported to parasitise a broad range of representatives of phocid seals. So far, only a few studies have focused on the vector function of echinophthiriid lice, and knowledge about their role in pathogen transmission is still scarce. The current study aims to investigate the possible vector role of E. horridus parasitising seals in the Dutch Wadden Sea.
methodsE. horridus seal lice were collected from 54 harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) and one grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) during their rehabilitation period at the Sealcentre Pieterburen, The Netherlands. DNA was extracted from pooled seal lice of individual seals for molecular detection of the seal heartworm Acanthocheilonema spirocauda, the rickettsial intracellular bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and the cell wall-less bacteria Mycoplasma spp. using PCR assays.
resultsSeal lice from 35% of the harbour seals (19/54) and from the grey seal proved positive for A. spirocauda. The seal heartworm was molecularly characterised and phylogenetically analysed (rDNA, cox1). A nested PCR was developed for the cox1 gene to detect A. spirocauda stages in seal lice. A. phagocytophilum and a Mycoplasma species previously identified from a patient with disseminated 'seal finger' mycoplasmosis were detected for the first time, to our knowledge, in seal lice.
conclusionsOur findings support the potential vector role of seal lice in the transmission of A. spirocauda and reveal new insights into the spectrum of pathogens occurring in seal lice. Studies on vector competence of E. horridus, especially for bacterial pathogens, are essentially needed in the future as these pathogens might have detrimental effects on the health of seal populations. Furthermore, studies on the vector role of different echinophthiriid species infecting a wide range of pinniped hosts should be conducted to extend the knowledge of vector-borne pathogens.
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