Veterinary parasitology--a Canadian perspective

This review was part of a presentation made at the opening plenary session of the 12th Conference of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology, held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 12-15 August 1987. That presentation and this review provide a bird's eye view of the country, its peoples, physiography, climate, natural resources, agriculture and animal population, highlights the activities of pioneers in parasitology, and provides some information about current research.     

History of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP)

Forty years ago the first meeting of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitiology (WAAVP) was held in Hannover, Germany. We now have a thriving, internationally recognized organization; the meetings attract hundreds of scientists, attendance is increasing with almost every meeting. It is a useful time to review our beginnings, our development and our future. Our history has been one of innovation and activity and contributed to by its members in important areas of veterinary parasitology.     

Various approaches of teaching veterinary parasitology

In this paper, we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of various approaches of teaching veterinary parasitology, including the disciplinary, the problem-oriented and combined approaches. In the disciplinary approach, parasitology is taught in the classical manner as a coherent subject, covering parasite morphology, biology, molecular biology, epidemiology, pathology, immunology, clinical manifestation, diagnosis, therapy, control, and prevention. Problem-oriented teaching approaches the subjects starting from diseases in animal species or from organ systems or other objectives (e.g. food safety); it also tackles training of skills for problem solving and self-learning. Combined approaches include elements of the disciplinary approach and those of other methods. A combined approach of teaching veterinary parasitology, including basic disciplinary teaching of at least 70-90 h, and additional problem-oriented education, was recently proposed in a resolution by the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology [WAAVP News Lett. 5 (1) 3-4]. In 1999, a new curriculum has been established at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Berne, originally planned as a combination of organ-focused and problem-based approach. This model was soon identified to cause problems in teaching some disciplines, including infectious diseases. Conversely, the short-term experiences with this combined approach also confirmed some advantages of problem-oriented teaching in other, mainly clinical domains. Nevertheless, closer interdisciplinary contact and collaboration--especially in elective teaching--was enforced between paraclinical and clinical teaching by reforming the curriculum. However, it turned out that large student numbers in relation to the resources of manpower, rooms and finances limited the workability of the curriculum. Therefore, further and probably continuous improvement of the curriculum is necessary.     

《动物寄生虫病学》课程教学方法的改革与实践

动物寄生虫病学是一门由一般生物学和兽医学构成的综合性学科,是阐明寄生于动物的各种寄生虫及其对动物所发生影响和所引起疾病的科学,是动物医学和畜牧兽医专业的一门专业基础课。通过对以往教学方法的改革和教学过程的实践,在教学过程中不仅改进常规教学方法,同时还增加学术论文的使用和实践操作的类型及时间比例,获得良好的教学效果。介绍了《动物寄生虫病学》课程的教学现状,并阐述了该课程教学方法改革与实践工作中的几点体会。     

Teaching veterinary parasitology: the North American perspective

The American Association of Veterinary Parasitologists (AAVP) initiated a study of parasitology curricula in veterinary schools in the US and Canada in November 1989. An ad hoc committee (Task Force) and then the Education Committee developed a position paper on teaching parasitology in veterinary colleges. In addition to confirming the importance of parasitology as a discipline they recommended a set of general learning objectives and proposed topic-specific titles rather than parasite-/group-specific titles. Another problem observed in teaching parasitology was a significant reduction in time available to teach parasitology. One way to compensate for the lost classroom time is to utilize some of the technological advances in presenting the material to students.     

The history of veterinary parasitology in Spain

A short history of the various contributions to the development of veterinary parasitology in Spain is given by considering five periods: (a) from the earliest times to the establishment of the first Veterinary Examination Board (Protoalbeiterato, A.D. 1500); (b) from 1500 to the creation of the Schools of Veterinary Medicine (1792-1793) and unification of the Veterinary profession (1850); (c) from 1850 to the appearance of parasitology as an autonomous discipline in the curricula; (d) from 1912 to the creation of Departments of Parasitology and Parasitic disease in the Faculties of Veterinary Medicine (1976); (e) from 1976 to the present day. In each period, the main contributions are considered and commented on, both from the parasitological and professional points of view. Finally, the role of veterinarians in modern Spanish parasitology is considered.     

Origin and history to date of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP) African Foundation

The origin of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP) African Foundation is described. The 16th WAAVP Conference held in South Africa in 1997 generated a surplus of ZAR 430 460 (US$ 70 116). This was invested and a foundation established to manage the fund with the intention of using it to the mutual advantage of the WAAVP and African veterinary parasitologists. To date, more than 110 scholarship applications have been screened, and 51 full and partial scholarships awarded to young African veterinary parasitologists to attend subsequent biennial WAAVP Conferences. This investment has grown into a very successful endowment currently valued at US$ 206 553. This article is written in response to many queries across the globe about the origin of this fund and how it has been invested, managed, sustained and utilised.     

Teaching veterinary parasitology throughout the world

In order to understand how the teaching of parasitology in veterinary schools and faculties in the world is carried out, a questionnaire was sent to all centres listed in the W.H.O. World Directory. A total of 91 replies were received. Additional information was obtained from the report of a symposium held in Hannover, Germany in 1978 and from the Education Committee of the American Association of Veterinary Parasitologists in 1981. The academic level, the place of parasitology in the veterinary curriculum, textbooks and practical instruction, evaluation techniques, teaching staff, institute organization and publications are discussed.     

加强兽医寄生虫学标本室建设 提升寄生虫形态学教学水平

为了提升寄生虫形态学教学水平,充分利用内蒙古农业大学预防兽医学寄生虫教研室积累的大量寄生虫标本进行授课,通过加强兽医寄生虫标本室建设和兽医寄生虫学实验教学改革探索,提升标本管理水平及寄生虫标本服务教学的水平,以期为该课程的教学改革提供思路。     

Progress in extermination of cattle grubs (Hypoderma spp.): Summary of the symposium

A symposium on “Extermination of Cattle grubs (Hypoderma spp.)” was organized at the Seventh International Conference of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology held at Thessaloniki, Greece, on 14–16 July 1975. The symposium dealt mainly with regional or national programs now operating for examination of cattle grubs in several countries, including Canada, Eire, the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Northern Ireland, Switzerland, and the U.S.S.R. Besides the papers published in this issue, papers were also presented on “Warble Fly Eradication in Eire” (Thornberry, 1975); “Changes in Immune Response to Hypoderma spp. in Cattle Treated With Fenthion” (Boulard, 1975); and “Eradication of Hypodermosis: Alternatives and Auxiliaries to Chemical Control Treatments” (J. Weintraub, unpublished data).     

Nomenclature for parasitic diseases: cohabitation with inconsistency for how long and why?

The author surveys the early history of nomenclature for parasitic diseases or infections which led to the existing usage of synonymous names with diverse spellings for denominating the same disease entities. In order to diminish heterogeneity in nomenclatural usage, principles of the standardized nomenclature of parasitic diseases (SNOPAD) have been put forward by the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology. Pros and cons regarding the SNOPAD concept are discussed in seeking consensus terminology. The need for a standard nomenclature may be judged differently. SNOPAD is just a guideline based on carefully reasoned and clearly defined principles for those authors and editors dissatisfied with the existing heterogeneous and inconsistent nomenclatural usage and wish to rely on a uniform and standard disease nomenclature. The major suggestion of SNOPAD is the use solely of suffix -osis when disease name is coined from the name of a parasite taxon. Meanwhile, the proposed principles were found sensible and accepted more in the field of veterinary, less in medical parasitology. In a recent survey it has been revealed that the majority (73.8%) of 126 national language parasitological textbooks or compendia from 21 countries of Europe published since 1990 adopted consistent '-osis' disease terminology and the rest (26.2%) used a mixture of disease names ending in '-osis' and '-iasis' inconsistently. For achieving substantial shift towards the use of more consistent disease terminology, the interest and support of the parasitologists' community is required. Editorials and database producers hold the key to further progress provided they see the advantages of the use of a single name of worldwide currency for each disease entity.     

Standardized nomenclature of animal parasitic diseases (SNOAPAD)

An expert committee, appointed by the Executive Committee of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (W.A.A.V.P.), presents its proposal for uniform and proper terminology to denominate animal parasitic diseases or infections. In principle, the disease name is constructed solely by the suffix -osis, which is added to the stem of the name of the parasite taxon, formed from the nominative of the taxa. Standardized nomenclature of animal parasitic diseases (SNOAPAD) is meant as a guideline for general use, to improve the clarity of scientific communication. It should be especially useful in promoting effective usage of computerized data retrieval services.     

World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP) guidelines for evaluating the effectiveness of anthelmintics in chickens and turkeys

These guidelines have been prepared to assist in the planning, operation and interpretation of studies designed to assess the effectiveness of drugs against helminth parasites of chickens and turkeys. They are the first to be compiled under the auspices of the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP) for these parasites. The advantages and disadvantages of the widely used critical and controlled tests are discussed. Information is provided on the selection of animals for experiments, animal housing, feed, dose determination studies, confirmatory and field trials, record keeping and necropsy procedures. This document should help investigators and those involved in product approval and registration in conducting and evaluating studies concerned with determining the effectiveness and safety of anthelmintic drugs.     

美国兽医学院联盟2016—2017年度报告教员数据解读

美国兽医学院联盟(AAVMC)对在美国、加拿大及隶属于其联盟的其他国家兽医学院的办学要求采取联合认证程序。通过解读AAVMC2016—2017年度报告中教员数据,包括行政人员、终身职位教员、非终身职位临床人员和非终身职位研究人员数量及比例,同时,解读上述教员类型中的性别比例及国籍比例,旨在为我国兽医(动物医学)教育与国际兽医教育的接轨,以及我国国家动物医学类办学标准中师资标准的制定提供参考。     

History of veterinary parasitology in France

The history of veterinary parasitology in France can be divided into three parts. (1) The early period of veterinary education, and development of sections on parasites and parasitic diseases, immediately following the creation of the veterinary colleges in France in 1762-1765 by Cl. Bourgelat until the beginning of the 19th century. This was the period of academics, naturalists and zoologists, with the exception of P. Chabert who, as early as 1782, directed attention to the harmful effects of parasites on animals and tried to control them. (2) Identification and establishment of the field of veterinary parasitology and the development of specific research work, mostly in veterinary colleges, on the biology and systematic control of parasites. This period was dominated by the tremendous amount of work carried out by L.G. Neumann and A. Railliet in every topic of veterinary parasitology. (3) The modern period of veterinary parasitology (before and after World War II). This period is characterized by the increasing development of the most sophisticated techniques in fundamental and applied research to provide efficient cheap and practical means for the diagnosis and control of parasitic diseases in animals.     

The Utrecht model of teaching veterinary medicine and the role of veterinary parasitology

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Utrecht, established a new curriculum for teaching veterinary medicine in 1995 with the main objectives to improve the problem-solving and communication competences of the students and their scientific education. Because it is accepted that graduates cannot get a starting competence in all fields of the veterinary profession, a differentiation of education focused on animal species and life-long learning is emphasised. Major characteristics of this curriculum are a high degree of horizontal and vertical integration of the various disciplines, the preference for teaching in small working groups and the training for self-learning. This curriculum is described in some detail. Parasitology is not taught as a coherent subject but is integrated into various subjects, presented in an interdisciplinary approach. The number of contact hours is variable depending on optional courses and the differentiation tracks taken but it amounts for a minimum of approximately 90 contact hours for each student during the full curriculum. A major disadvantage of the curriculum is that examination of parasitology is within integrated subjects. Thus, students that perform poorly on parasitology may still pass. An advantage is the extended presence of parasitology in the last year of clinical training and the improved interdisciplinary interaction between parasitologists and clinicians. The curriculum has been changed again in 2001; study paths focused on animal species and other subjects start already in the first year, and approximately 25% of the first 4 years of the curriculum will be within these study paths.     

Bovine Respiratory Disease Questionnaire

The purpose of the questionnaire was to gain an insight into the state of the art and to give direction to control measures for, and research into, bovine respiratory disease. Workers with an active interest in bovine respiratory disease were asked to respond. With the approval of the Committee on Large Animal Practice, it was distributed in Canada by the office of the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association to the veterinary colleges, the federal animal diseases research laboratories and the directors of provincial veterinary services for further distribution, and also to the Veterinary Infectious Diseases Organization and Connaught Laboratories.

Twenty-six questionnaries were returned and one letter was received in response. Replies were from 13 research scientists (including clinicians), six laboratory diagnosticians, four regulatory workers, three administrators, and one person of unknown specialization.

     

Pyrantel resistance in two herds of donkey in the UK

Resistance to currently available anthelmintics is a serious phenomenon which is prevalent globally. Cyathostomins are one of the major parasites, and are of primary concern in donkeys. There have been reports of emerging resistance to pyrantel, but the status of pyrantel resistance in donkey populations in the UK is largely unknown. This report investigates pyrantel resistance in two geographically isolated donkey herds in the South West of England. The first herd had suspected pyrantel resistance, with already established resistance to other anthelmintics. In the second herd the efficacy of pyrantel was not suspected at the time the study took place. Faecal Egg Count Reduction Test (FECRT) was carried out, revealing large scale resistance. Eighty one percent of the first herd and 73% of the second herd had a FEC of less than 95% after treatment, and anthelmintic resistance was confirmed using the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology guidelines. These findings indicate that anthelmintic resistance to pyrantel exists in both tested donkey populations and illustrate the continuing development of resistance through different classes of chemotherapeutics.     

Presidential address

Extract

This, the 40th Annual General Meeting of the New Zealand Veterinary Association being held at Massey University of Manawatu has a very special significance for the veterinary profession in New Zealand. It was at Palmerston North in November, 1924, that the first Annual General Meeting of our Association was held, with 14 members in attendance. This year, when the newly established Faculty of Veterinary Science at this University initiates undergraduate training, it is a great privilege and source of satisfaction to our Association to hold our conference at Massey with a greatly augmented membership.     

Potential problems associated with the controlled release of anthelmintics in grazing animals

A high, constant and sustained release of drug appears to be a major requirement to avoid a late season rise in pasture infectivity that may result in production losses in calves in autumn or Type II osteragiasis in the following spring. The timing of administration is of crucial importance and will vary in regions of different epidemiology, such as between northern and southern United States. Lack of a standard and reliable technique for pasture larval counts has resulted in some negative or erratic results which are open to question. Although controlled release anthelmintics offer advantages of convenience, a comparison of the economic benefits at present favours prophylactic treatment of dairy heifers with conventional anthelmintics 3 and 6 weeks after spring turnout in northern regions of the Northern Hemisphere. There is a serious risk that boluses based on controlled release by diffusion will behave like slow decaying insecticides and select strongly for drug resistance, especially if farmers administer them in succession throughout the grazing season. There are, however, 2 features in the design of a controlled release device that in theory may minimize the risk of rapid selection for resistance: a high and constant release of anthelmintic followed by a rapid decline to zero as the device becomes exhausted. Under these conditions, the device may even prolong the useful life of an anthelmintic to which resistance has already developed. This paper was presented at Pfizer Symposium on The Application of Sustained Release Anthelmintic Dosage Forms in the Control of Parasites in Grazing Animals at the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (W.A.A.V.P.) 10th International Conference, 18-20 August 1983, Perth, W.A., Australia.