Aelurostrongylus abstrusus

Also known as: Cat lungworm

Aelurostrongylus abstrusus
Class	Nematoda
Super-family	Metastrongyloidea
Family	Angiostrongylidae
Species	Aelurostrongylus abstrusus

Aeurostrongylus abstrusus - Courtesy of the Laboratory of Parasitology, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine

Hosts

Intermediate hosts: Molluscs, including snails and slugs, as well as paratenic hosts, including rodents, birds, amphibians, and reptiles.

Definitive host: Cat.

Identification

A. abstrusus are small parasites of the family Angiostrongylidae, measuring around 1cm in length. The worms are long and thing, and the male has a bursa, but it is small and poorly developed.

Life Cycle

This is an indirect lifecyle, involving two intermediate hosts, and a definitive host. The female is ovo-viviparous, and passes L1 within the host faeces. The L1 then infect the molluscs, and later develop into L2, then infective L3. The paratenic host ingests the molluscs. The cat, acting as the definitive host then ingests the L3, and becomes infected with the parasite.

The larvae then travel to the lungs via the lymphatic system or the bloodstream. These can be seen as nodules on the lungs. They then hatch out, and are coughed up and swallowed. The parasite enters the alimentary tract, and is passed out in the faeces.

It affects pulmonary parenchyma and causes Aelurostrongylosis.

Literature Search

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Aelurostrongylus abstrusus publications