Nicoletti, A.; Pregel, P.; Starvaggi Cucuzza, L.; Bollo, E.; Scaglione, F.E. A Health Status Update of Myocastor coypus in Northern Italy. Animals2024, 14, 245.
Nicoletti, A.; Pregel, P.; Starvaggi Cucuzza, L.; Bollo, E.; Scaglione, F.E. A Health Status Update of Myocastor coypus in Northern Italy. Animals 2024, 14, 245.
Nicoletti, A.; Pregel, P.; Starvaggi Cucuzza, L.; Bollo, E.; Scaglione, F.E. A Health Status Update of Myocastor coypus in Northern Italy. Animals2024, 14, 245.
Nicoletti, A.; Pregel, P.; Starvaggi Cucuzza, L.; Bollo, E.; Scaglione, F.E. A Health Status Update of Myocastor coypus in Northern Italy. Animals 2024, 14, 245.
Abstract
Myocastor coypus is a pest animal present in Africa, Europe, North America, and Asia that causes agricultural and ecological damages. Moreover, it has to be considered as a potential risk for public health. Forty-four Nutrias from the “Parco Naturale La Mandria” (Piedmont region, Northwest Italy) have been analysed. A complete necropsy and a whole histological evaluation of liver, kidney and lung have been carried out on all the animals. Moreover, the positivity to Hepatitis E Virus (HEV), Encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV), Francisella spp., Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum have been investigated. None of the animal resulted positive for HEV, EMCV, Francisella spp. or Neospora caninum. Two animals tested positive for Toxoplasma gondii. A high presence of histological lesions has been identified in different organs, suggesting that lesions could be induced by different pathogens. As previously reported, Nutria can act as a host for several pathogens, including important agents for human and animal health, and surveillance is necessary, to fully understand the biological role and the importance of coypu as a disease reservoir in our country.
Keywords
Nutria; ecological impact; health status; public health; Toxoplasma gondii; zoonoses.
Subject
Biology and Life Sciences, Animal Science, Veterinary Science and Zoology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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