| role of lagomorpha in the wild cycle of rickettsia conorii in salamanca (spain). | in an endemic zone for mediterranean spotted fever levels of antibodies to r. conorii were evaluated in serum samples from wild rabbits (orytolagus cuniculus) and hares (lepus granatensis) using an indirect microimmunofluorescence antibody test. the results of the study show that the wild rabbit may carry out in this area an important function in the maintenance of r. conorii in nature. | 1992 | 1572424 |
| new genetic variation in european hares, lepus granatensis and l. europaeus. | six genetic polymorphisms for the iberian hare (lepus granatensis) and four for the brown hare (l. europaeus) are newly described. the genetic variation of peptidases b (pepb) and c (pepc), hemoglobin alpha chain (hba), hemopexin (hpx), vitamin d binding protein (gc), and properdin factor b (bf) was assessed by conventional electrophoresis and isoelectric focusing in carrier ampholytes and hybrid ph gradients. six alleles were detected in pepb, three in pepc, four in hba, six in gc, five in hpx, ... | 2000 | 11100268 |
| invasion from the cold past: extensive introgression of mountain hare (lepus timidus) mitochondrial dna into three other hare species in northern iberia. | mitochondrial dna introgression from lepus timidus into lepus granatensis and lepus europaeus was recently reported in iberia, although l. timidus presumably retreated from this region at the end of the last ice age. here we assess the extent of this ancient mtdna introgression by rflp analysis of 695 specimens representing the three hare species present in iberia. the introgressed l. timidus lineage was found in 23 of the 37 populations sampled. it is almost fixed in l. europaeus across its ibe ... | 2005 | 15969727 |
| eimeria (coccidia: eimeridea) of hares in france: description of new taxa. | the oocysts of coccidian of the genus eimeria were sought in the caecal contents of 46 lepus granatensis and 18 l. europaeus captured in france. parasites were found in 34 of the hares. parasite load was mainly very low. however, species diversity was considerable. 21 species or subspecies were identified, of which 13 species and two subspecies were not previously described. three of the taxa, e. robertsoni, e. semisculpta and e. townsendi, previously identified on numerous occasions in western ... | 2005 | 15991826 |
| seroprevalence of neospora caninum in non-carnivorous wildlife from spain. | serum samples from 1034 non-carnivorous wildlife from spain were tested for antibodies to neospora caninum by competitive screening enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (elisa) and confirmed by an indirect fluorescent antibody test (ifat). high agreement was observed between results in both techniques (kappa value higher than 0.9). prevalences of n. caninum antibodies positive by both techniques were 11.8% of 237 red deer (cervus elaphus), 7.7% of 13 barbary sheep (ammotragus lervia), 6.1% of 33 ro ... | 2007 | 16962706 |
| the rise and fall of the mountain hare (lepus timidus) during pleistocene glaciations: expansion and retreat with hybridization in the iberian peninsula. | the climatic fluctuations during glaciations have affected differently arctic and temperate species. in the northern hemisphere, cooling periods induced the expansion of many arctic species to the south, while temperate species were forced to retract in southern refugia. consequently, in some areas the alternation of these species set the conditions for competition and eventually hybridization. hares in the iberian peninsula appear to illustrate this phenomenon. populations of iberian hare (lepu ... | 2007 | 17257116 |
| helminth communities of an introduced hare (lepus granatensis) and a native hare (lepus europaeus) in southern france. | we investigated the parasite communities of introduced iberian hares (lepus granatensis) and native european hares (lepus europaeus) in southern france, where iberian hares were introduced locally 20 yr ago as a game animal. parasite communities of sympatric populations of the two hare species and of allopatric populations of european hares were compared. iberian hares in france harbored a depauperate community of parasites relative to the population in its native habitat in spain. european hare ... | 2007 | 17984274 |
| the ubiquitous mountain hare mitochondria: multiple introgressive hybridization in hares, genus lepus. | climatic oscillations during the glaciations forced dramatic changes in species distributions, such that some presently temperate regions were alternately occupied by temperate and arctic species. these species could have met and hybridized during climatic transitions. this phenomenon happened for three hare species present in iberia (lepus granatensis, lepus europaeus and lepus castroviejoi), which display high frequencies of mitochondrial dna (mtdna) from lepus timidus, an arctic/boreal specie ... | 2008 | 18508749 |
| role of wildlife in the epidemiology of leishmania infantum infection in europe. | although dogs are considered the main reservoir of leishmania infantum infection in endemic areas in europe, the existence of other wild vertebrate reservoirs has been proposed as a possible cause of the lack of success of control measures. evidence of l. infantum infection in european wildlife has been reported in carnivores, lagomorphs, and rodents. the red fox (vulpes vulpes) received most attention, probably due to its taxonomic relationship with the dog and because it is the most abundant w ... | 2014 | 24804923 |
| could wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) be reservoirs for leishmania infantum in the focus of madrid, spain? | xenodiagnosis has previously proved that hares (lepus granatensis) from a focus of leishmaniasis in the southwestern madrid region (spain) are infective to phlebotomus perniciosus, the only vector in the area, thus playing a probable role as active reservoirs in a sylvatic transmission cycle linked to the usual domestic one. although actions have been taken to reduce the population of this lagomorph, a high population of wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) is present in the area, which shows de ... | 2014 | 24774435 |
| leishmania infantum in free-ranging hares, spain, 2004-2010. | iberian hares (lepus granatensis) were recently deemed responsible for an outbreak of human leishmaniasis affecting metropolitan madrid, spain. however, the reservoir potential of hares in europe is poorly known. we report a retrospective survey on leishmania infantum, the causal agent of zoonotic endemic leishmaniasis in the mediterranean basin, infection status of iberian, european (le. europaeus) and broom (le. castroviejoi) hares in spain. spleen samples from 94 hares were tested by polymera ... | 2013 | 23929180 |
| detection of leishmania infantum and identification of blood meals in phlebotomus perniciosus from a focus of human leishmaniasis in madrid, spain. | since 2010, the number of cases of both human visceral leishmaniasis and cutaneous leishmaniasis in southwestern madrid region (spain) and more specifically in the town of fuenlabrada has increased. direct xenodiagnosis of leishmaniasis proved that hares (lepus granatensis) from this focus are able to infect with leishmania infantum colonized phlebotomus perniciosus. to a better understanding of this focus of leishmaniasis, we conducted an entomological survey using cdc light traps, at the end o ... | 2013 | 23535889 |
| the hare (lepus granatensis) as potential sylvatic reservoir of leishmania infantum in spain. | xenodiagnosis of leishmania infection in hares (lepus granatensis) from a focus of human leishmaniasis in fuenlabrada at southwestern madrid region (spain) proved that they are infective to phlebotomus perniciosus. molecular characterization of isolates obtained from sand flies infected after xenodiagnosis demonstrates that hares were infected by leishmania infantum. this is the first evidence of the transmission of l. infantum from hares to sand flies. moreover the results confirm the role that ... | 2012 | 22677135 |
| detection of rhdv strains in the iberian hare (lepus granatensis): earliest evidence of rabbit lagovirus cross-species infection. | rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (rhdv) is a highly lethal lagovirus, family caliciviridae, that threatens european rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus). although a related virus severely affects hares, cross-species infection was only recently described for new variant rhdv in cape hares (lepus capensis mediterraneus). we sequenced two strains from dead iberian hares (lepus granatensis) collected in the 1990s in portugal. clinical signs were compatible with a lagovirus infection. phylogenetic analys ... | 2014 | 25248407 |
| epidemiology and prevalence of toxoplasma gondii infection in the iberian hare (lepus granatensis). | hares are important game species in europe and their meat is consumed by humans. toxoplasmosis is an important cause of mortality in hares in nordic countries but little is known of toxoplasma gondii infection in the iberian hare (lepus granatensis). sera from 298 iberian hares from navarra (north spain) were assayed for antibodies against t. gondii by the modified agglutination test. the samples were collected at necropsy during three consecutive years (2009-2011). titers of 1:25 and higher wer ... | 2013 | 23462253 |
| phlebotomine sand fly survey in the focus of leishmaniasis in madrid, spain (2012-2014): seasonal dynamics, leishmania infantum infection rates and blood meal preferences. | an unusual increase of human leishmaniasis cases due to leishmania infantum is occurring in an urban area of southwestern madrid, spain, since 2010. entomological surveys have shown that phlebotomus perniciosus is the only potential vector. direct xenodiagnosis in hares (lepus granatensis) and rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) collected in the focus area proved that they can transmit parasites to colonized p. perniciosus. isolates were characterized as l. infantum. the aim of the present work was ... | 2017 | 28764772 |
| efficacies of prevention and control measures applied during an outbreak in southwest madrid, spain. | leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease of worldwide distribution, currently present in 98 countries. since late 2010, an unusual increase of human visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis cases has been observed in the south-western madrid region, totaling more than 600 cases until 2015. some hosts, such as human, domestic dog and cat, rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus), and hare (lepus granatensis), were found infected by the parasite of this disease in the area. hares were described as the most impor ... | 2017 | 29028841 |
| interspecific x-chromosome and mitochondrial dna introgression in the iberian hare: selection or allele surfing? | introgression from a resident species into an invading one is predicted to occur through the demographic process of "allele surfing," and to particularly affect genomic regions transmitted by the lower migrating sex, such as mtdna. this could explain that northern iberian populations of lepus granatensis harbor high frequencies of mtdna from l. timidus, an arctic hare it replaced there after deglaciation. we report that variation of introgressed timidus-like mtdna reflects several predicted effe ... | 2011 | 21729051 |
| home-loving boreal hare mitochondria survived several invasions in iberia: the relative roles of recurrent hybridisation and allele surfing. | genetic introgression from a resident species into an invading close relative can result from repeated hybridisation along the invasion front and/or allele surfing on the expansion wave. cases where the phenomenon is massive and systematic, such as for hares (genus lepus) in iberia, would be best explained by recurrent hybridisation but this is difficult to prove because the donor populations are generally extinct. in the pyrenean foothills, lepus europaeus presumably replaced lepus granatensis ... | 2014 | 24149657 |
| range expansion underlies historical introgressive hybridization in the iberian hare. | introgressive hybridization is an important and widespread evolutionary process, but the relative roles of neutral demography and natural selection in promoting massive introgression are difficult to assess and an important matter of debate. hares from the iberian peninsula provide an appropriate system to study this question. in its northern range, the iberian hare, lepus granatensis, shows a northwards gradient of increasing mitochondrial dna (mtdna) introgression from the arctic/boreal l. tim ... | 2017 | 28120863 |
| long-term patterns in iberian hare population dynamics in a protected area (doñana national park) in the southwestern iberian peninsula: effects of weather conditions and plant cover. | the iberian hare (lepus granatensis) is a widely distributed endemic species in the iberian peninsula. to improve our knowledge of its population dynamics, the relative abundance and population trends of the iberian hare were studied in the autumns of 1995-2012 in a protected area (doñana national park) by spotlighting in 2 different habitats: marshland and ecotones. the average relative abundance was 0.38 hare/km (sd = 0.63) in the marshland and 3.6 hares/km (sd = 4.09) in ecotones. the iberian ... | 2017 | 27264936 |
| past, present and future distributions of an iberian endemic, lepus granatensis: ecological and evolutionary clues from species distribution models. | the application of species distribution models (sdms) in ecology and conservation biology is increasing and assuming an important role, mainly because they can be used to hindcast past and predict current and future species distributions. however, the accuracy of sdms depends on the quality of the data and on appropriate theoretical frameworks. in this study, comprehensive data on the current distribution of the iberian hare (lepus granatensis) were used to i) determine the species' ecogeographi ... | 2012 | 23272115 |
| absence of hepatitis e virus circulation in wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) and iberian hares (lepus granatensis) in mediterranean ecosystems in spain. | in recent decades, cases of autochthonous hepatitis e (he) have sharply increased in european countries where foodborne transmission is considered the main route of he virus (hev) transmission. although rabbits are considered the main reservoir of the zoonotic hev-3ra subtype, information on the role of wild lagomorphs in the epidemiology of hev remains scarce. the aim of this study therefore was to assess the circulation of hev in european wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) and iberian hares ... | 2020 | 31930690 |
| diversity of methicillin-resistant staphylococci among wild lepus granatensis: first detection of meca-mrsa in hares. | mrsa in humans, pets and livestock have been widely investigated, nevertheless, there is still little information of mrsa in wild animals. therefore, this study aimed to investigate the occurrence and antimicrobial resistance profiles of methicillin-resistant staphylococci (mrs) in wild iberian hares and to characterize their genetic lineages. samples from 83 wild hares (lepus granatensis) were collected during the hunting season. isolation of mrs was accomplish using oxacillin resistant screeni ... | 2020 | 31855250 |
| first outbreak of myxomatosis in iberian hares (lepus granatensis). | myxomatosis is an infectious disease caused by myxoma virus (myxv; genus leporipoxvirus), which affects the european wild rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) and sporadically brown hares (lepus europaeus). here, we describe the first outbreak of myxomatosis in iberian hares (lepus granatensis). between mid-july and the end of september 2018, around 530 dead animals were detected in iberian hare populations in southern spain. the apparent mean mortality rate was 56.7%, and the estimated mean case fata ... | 2019 | 31293076 |
| genetic characterization of a recombinant myxoma virus in the iberian hare (lepus granatensis). | myxomatosis is a lethal disease in wild european and domestic rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus), which is caused by a myxoma virus (myxv) infection-a leporipoxvirus that is found naturally in some sylvilagus rabbit species in south america and california. the introduction of myxv into feral european rabbit populations of australia and europe, in the early 1950s, demonstrated the best-documented field example of host-virus coevolution, following a cross-species transmission. recently, a new cross-s ... | 2019 | 31181645 |
| monitoring of emerging myxoma virus epidemics in iberian hares (lepus granatensis) in spain, 2018-2020. | myxomatosis is an infectious disease caused by the myxoma virus (myxv), which has very high mortality rates in european wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus). while sporadic cases of myxomatosis have also been reported in some hare species, these lagomorphs are considered to have a low susceptibility to myxv infection. in the present study, we describe the spatiotemporal evolution and main epidemiological findings of novel hare myxv (ha-myxv or myxv-tol) epidemics in iberian hares (lepus granaten ... | 2020 | 32786107 |
| response to the letter to the editor concerning 'absence of hepatitis e virus circulation in wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) and iberian hares (lepus granatensis) in mediterranean ecosystems in spain' by caballero-gómez et al. (transbound emerg dis; 2020: https://doi.org/10.1111/tbed.13478). | | 2020 | 32598556 |
| a pathological study of leishmania infantum natural infection in european rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) and iberian hares (lepus granatensis). | in this study, we describe the pathology of leishmania infantum infection in naturally infected wild leporidae and compare diagnosis of infection using histopathology, direct fluorescent antibody (dfa) assay, immunofluorescence antibody test (ifat) and quantitative real-time pcr (qpcr). tissues were analysed from 52 european rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) and 7 iberian hares (lepus granatensis) from the community of madrid (spain). our results show that l. infantum infection is associated with ... | 2019 | 31339665 |
| myxoma virus jumps species to the iberian hare. | the study of myxoma virus (myxv) infections in the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus) has produced one of the most accepted host-pathogen evolutionary models. to date, myxomatosis has been limited to the european rabbit with sporadic reports in hares. however, reports of widespread mortalities in the iberian hare (lepus granatensis) with myxomatosis-like clinical signs indicate a potential species jump has occurred. the presence of myxv dna was confirmed by pcr in 244 samples received from ... | 2019 | 31322320 |
| coinfections of novel polyomavirus, anelloviruses and a recombinant strain of myxoma virus-myxv-tol identified in iberian hares. | viruses are ubiquitous in nature; however, very few have been identified in the leporid species. in the fall of 2018, an outbreak of myxomatosis in iberian hares (lepus granatensis) was reported in spain and a novel recombinant myxoma virus strain (myxv-tol) was identified. to investigate variability within the recombinant region of the myxv-tol and identify any potential viral coinfections, samples (ear, eyelid or vaginal) of iberian hares were collected from spain and analyzed. the presence of ... | 2020 | 32244962 |
| the genomic impact of historical hybridization with massive mitochondrial dna introgression. | the extent to which selection determines interspecific patterns of genetic exchange enlightens the role of adaptation in evolution and speciation. often reported extensive interspecific introgression could be selection-driven, but also result from demographic processes, especially in cases of invasive species replacements, which can promote introgression at their invasion front. because invasion and selective sweeps similarly mold variation, population genetics evidence for selection can only be ... | 2018 | 30056805 |
| a versatile qpcr for diagnosis of leporid gammaherpesvirus 5 using evagreen® or taqman® technologies. | in late 2019, the first herpesvirus in the genus lepus, named leporid gammaherpesvirus 5 (lehv-5) was described. at the time, herpetic typical lesions were observed in hares infected by the myxoma virus, which is known to induce immunosuppression. though the real impact of lehv-5 is still poorly understood, since it affects reproduction, it poses an additional threat to the already fragile populations of iberian hare, demanding prevalence investigations. in this article, we describe the first qu ... | 2021 | 33924254 |
| detection of myxoma virus dna in ticks from lagomorph species in spain suggests their possible role as competent vector in viral transmission. | myxoma virus (myxv) causes morbidity and mortality in european wild rabbits (oryctolagus cuniculus) worldwide, and recently in iberian hares (lepus granatensis) in spain. we aimed to assess the presence of myxv-specific dna in ixodid ticks collected from both hosts. a total of 417 ticks harvested from 30 wild lagomorphs, including wild rabbits and iberian hares were collected from southern spain. enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and pcr-sequencing were used to detect virus exposure and presence ... | 2021 | 33626569 |