Review
Parasitology
Roger K. Prichard
Summary: Heartworm disease, caused by Dirofilaria immitis and transmitted by mosquitoes, is a lethal disease in dogs and cats. Prevention primarily relies on macrocyclic lactones, with resistance to these drugs being an important issue that requires better testing methods for confirmation and surveillance of resistance levels. Additional research and development of new classes of heartworm preventives are needed to combat the spread of resistance and further disease.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR PARASITOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Parasitology
Molly D. Savadelis, Tom L. McTier, Kristina Kryda, Steven J. Maeder, Debra J. Woods
Summary: Heartworm disease remains a significant and pathogenic disease in dogs, despite the regular use of preventive products. Some strains of D. immitis have developed resistance to the only available drug class, macrocyclic lactones (MLs), for heartworm prevention in the United States. The optimization of dose and formulation of moxidectin provides a unique opportunity to improve efficacy against ML-resistant strains. Two new products, ProHeart (R) 12 and Simparica Trio (R), have demonstrated 100% preventive efficacy against recent field strains of heartworm, offering important advances in heartworm prevention for veterinarians and pet owners.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Lucienne Tritten, Erica J. Burkman, Tobias Clark, Guilherme G. Verocai
Summary: Two novel miRNA candidates secreted by D. immitis larvae have been identified, which could serve as specific diagnostic biomarkers for early detection of infection.
Article
Veterinary Sciences
Kennedy Mwacalimba, Deborah Amodie, Lisa Swisher, Marina Moldavchuk, Christopher Brennan, Claire Walther, Kelly Bowman
Summary: The study found that injectable moxidectin had a higher 12-month preventive purchase compliance rate compared to monthly heartworm disease preventives, generating more revenue for veterinary hospitals.
FRONTIERS IN VETERINARY SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Veterinary Sciences
Kennedy Mwacalimba, Andrea Wright, Konstantinos Giannakakis, Richard L'Estrange, Tinh-Son Nguyen
Summary: In the 5 years from 2010 to 2015, 73% of dog owners who visited a veterinary practice at least twice made less than two purchases of HW preventatives from the veterinary practice. For those with at least two preventative purchases, 76.7% of dogs receiving IM and 24.4% of dogs prescribed with MHW products purchased enough doses to provide continuous protection over the observation period.
FRONTIERS IN VETERINARY SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Parasitology
Lisa M. Young, Scott Wiseman, Elizabeth Crawley, Kim Wallace, Daniel E. Snyder
Summary: The study demonstrated the effectiveness of the combination product in preventing heartworm disease and its good tolerability in dogs; all treated dogs remained heartworm negative, showing 100% prevention efficacy.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2021)
Review
Parasitology
Filipe Dantas-Torres, Jennifer Ketzis, Gabriela Perez Tort, Andrei Daniel Mihalca, Gad Baneth, Domenico Otranto, Malaika Watanabe, Bui Khanh Linh, Tawin Inpankaew, Pablo Borras, Sangaran Arumugam, Barend Louis Penzhorn, Adrian Patalinghug Ybanez, Peter Irwin, Rebecca J. Traub
Summary: The canine heartworm, Dirofilaria immitis, is widely spread in tropical areas, where the prevalence can exceed 30% in high-risk regions. The lack of compliance with year-round preventives and the unavailability of melarsomine in several tropical countries pose a major concern. The authors of this article discuss the current distribution of heartworm in the tropics, the availability of melarsomine, and alternative management options for heartworm infections in dogs.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2023)
Article
Parasitology
Sheerin Mathur, Phyllis B. Malpas, Sean Mahabir, Joseph Boucher, Aleah Pullins, Genevieve Gagnon, Tom L. McTier, Steven Maeder
Summary: This study aimed to determine the safety of Simparica Trio in heartworm-infected dogs and its efficacy in reducing microfilaria counts. The results showed that Simparica Trio was well tolerated and significantly reduced microfilaria counts, without causing severe clinical complications.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Remy Betous, Anthony Emile, Hua Che, Eva J. Guchen, Didier Concordet, Thavy Long, Sandra Noack, Paul M. Selzer, Roger Prichard, Anne Lespine
Summary: Nematode parasites enter their definitive host as infectious larvae and DAF-12 plays a role in their development to adulthood. The filarial nematodes' DAF-12 exhibit higher sensitivity to ligands and can be specifically activated by mammalian sera. These findings suggest that filarial nematodes have evolved to sense and adapt to their host environment to resume larval development.
Review
Veterinary Sciences
Linda S. Jacobson, Brian A. DiGangi
Summary: Canine heartworm infection, caused by Dirofilaria immitis, is a growing animal welfare concern exacerbated by climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. The use of non-arsenical adulticide treatment protocols, such as moxidectin-doxycycline, provides a safe and effective alternative for countries where arsenical drugs are not available.
FRONTIERS IN VETERINARY SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Parasitology
Tom L. McTier, Susan Holzmer, Kristina Kryda, Sean Mahabir, John W. McCall, Jami Trombley, Steven J. Maeder
Summary: ProHeart 12 was more effective in preventing the development of ML-resistant heartworm strain JYD-34 compared to Heartgard Plus and Interceptor Plus in both studies. Heartgard Plus and Interceptor Plus showed lower efficacy with consecutive monthly doses.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2021)
Article
Veterinary Sciences
Cristina Vercelli, Luigi Bertolotti, Elisa Gelsi, Carlo Gazza, Giovanni Re
Summary: This study confirms the effectiveness of Afilaria SR in preventing Dirofilaria immitis infection in dogs and demonstrates its good tolerability with few side effects.
VETERINARY SCIENCES
(2022)
Review
Microbiology
Anastasia Diakou, Roger K. Prichard
Summary: D. immitis infection is a severe parasitic disease in dogs, but prevention can be achieved through the use of MLs drugs. ML-resistant strains of D. immitis have been proven to exist in the Lower Mississippi region, USA, but not reported in Europe. The establishment and spread of resistance is challenging, highlighting the importance of monitoring ML resistance globally.
Article
Parasitology
Jamie A. E. Myers, Susan Holzmer, John W. McCall, Sean P. Mahabir, Tom L. McTier, Steven J. Maeder, Kristina Kryda
Summary: This study compared the efficacy of Simparica Trio with Heartgard Plus and Interceptor Plus in preventing the development of ML-resistant heartworm strain. The results showed that six consecutive monthly doses of Simparica Trio had the highest effectiveness in preventing heartworm development.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2022)
Review
Parasitology
Timothy G. Geary
Summary: Despite the perception that heartworm is a solved problem in veterinary medicine, increasing frequency and geographic distribution of heartworm infections, along with resistance to preventative therapies, pose ongoing challenges. The lack of basic information on heartworms limits research into new prevention and treatment methods. Recent advances in technical platforms and laboratory animal models offer opportunities for discovering new drugs, diagnostic biomarkers, and parasite-derived molecules, as well as insights into the host-parasite relationship.
PARASITES & VECTORS
(2023)