''Brugia timori'' is a

filaria ''Filaria'' is a genus of nematodes belonging to the family Filariidae. The genus has cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, cosmopolitan distribution is the term for the range of a taxon that extends across all or most of the world in ...

l (

arthropod Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

-borne)

nematode The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant-Parasitism, parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhab ...

(roundworm) which causes the disease "Timor

filariasis Filariasis is a parasitic disease caused by an infection with roundworms of the Filarioidea type. These are spread by blood-feeding insects such as black flies and mosquitoes. They belong to the group of diseases called helminthiases. These ...

", or "Timorian

". While this disease was first described in 1965, the identity of ''Brugia timori'' as the causative agent was not known until 1977. In that same year, '' Anopheles barbirostris'' was shown to be its primary

vector Vector most often refers to: *Euclidean vector, a quantity with a magnitude and a direction *Vector (epidemiology), an agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen into another living organism Vector may also refer to: Mathematic ...

. There is no known animal reservoir host.

Signs and symptoms

Like other human

infections, ''Brugia timori'' filariasis causes acute

fever Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a body temperature, temperature above the human body temperature, normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature Human body temperature#Fever, set point. There is not a single ...

and chronic

lymphedema Lymphedema, also known as lymphoedema and lymphatic edema, is a condition of localized swelling caused by a compromised lymphatic system. The lymphatic system functions as a critical portion of the body's immune system and returns interstitial fl ...

. The life cycle of ''Brugia timori'' is very similar to that of ''

Wuchereria bancrofti ''Wuchereria bancrofti'' is a filarial (arthropod-borne) nematode (roundworm) that is the major cause of lymphatic filariasis. It is one of the three parasitic worms, together with '' Brugia malayi'' and '' B. timori'', that infect the lymphat ...

'' and ''

Brugia malayi ''Brugia malayi'' is a filarial (arthropod-borne) nematode (roundworm), one of the three causative agents of lymphatic filariasis in humans. Lymphatic filariasis, also known as elephantiasis, is a condition characterized by swelling of the lower l ...

'', leading to nocturnal periodicity of the disease symptoms. Eosinophilia is common during acute stages of infection. So far ''Brugia timori'' has only been found in the

Lesser Sunda Islands The Lesser Sunda Islands or nowadays known as Nusa Tenggara Islands ( id, Kepulauan Nusa Tenggara, formerly ) are an archipelago in Maritime Southeast Asia, north of Australia. Together with the Greater Sunda Islands to the west they make up t ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. It is locally confined to areas inhabited by its

mosquito Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "li ...

vector, which breeds in

rice fields A paddy field is a flooded field of arable land used for growing semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in southern China, associated with pre-Aust ...

. One study of the prevalence of infection in Mainang village, Alor Island, found microfilariae in the blood of 157 of 586 individuals (27%), with 77 of them (13%) exhibiting lymphedema of the leg.

Parasite

The microfilariae of ''Brugia timori'' are longer and morphologically distinct from those of ''Brugia malayi'' and ''Wuchereria bancrofti'', with a

cephalic A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals m ...

space length-to-width ratio of about 3:1. ''B. timori'' more closely resembles the symptoms caused by ''B. malayi'' and morphologically resembles ''B. malayi''."Lymphatic Filariasis Endemic Countries and Territories." Lymphatic Filariasis Disease. May 2006. The Carter Center. 13 May 2006. Also, the sheath of ''B. timori'' does not stain pink with Giemsa stain as is observed with ''B. malayi'' and ''W. bancrofti''.

Life cycle

The life cycle is: # During feeding, mosquitos ingest the infective filariform from an infected host # Inside the mosquito the microfilariae penetrate the midgut and migrate to muscle tissue to grow and undergo two molts into infective filariform larvae (no sexual reproduction occurs within the mosquito) # The filariform larvae will migrate to the mouthparts of the mosquito # Larvae enter the host's circulation and migrate to lymphatic vessels where they develop into microfilariae-producing adults. Here the adults can live for several years # The infective filariform enter the circulation of the host to repeat the life cycle

Morphology

''B. timori'' microfilariae have nuclei that extend to the tip of the tail, which is also characteristic of ''B. malayi'' but not ''W. bancrofti''. ''B. timori'' microfilariae are slightly larger than ''B. malayi'' microfilariae.

Endosymbiont

Aside from vectoring ''Brugia'' species, mosquitoes also maintain ''Wolbachia'' spp. which has been found to be an obligate intracellular bacterial endosymbiont of ''Brugia'' spp. ''Wolbachia'' supports essential biochemical pathways necessary for the survival of ''Brugia'', especially processes such as embryogenesis and molting.

Treatment

Anthelmintics Anthelmintics or antihelminthics are a group of antiparasitic drugs that expel parasitic worms (helminths) and other internal parasites from the body by either stunning or killing them and without causing significant damage to the host. They may a ...

such as

diethylcarbamazine Diethylcarbamazine is a medication used in the treatment of filariasis including lymphatic filariasis, tropical pulmonary eosinophilia, and loiasis. It may also be used for prevention of loiasis in those at high risk. While it has been used for o ...

and

albendazole Albendazole (also known as albendazolum) is a broad-spectrum anthelmintic and antiprotozoal agent of the benzimidazole type. It is used for the treatment of a variety of intestinal parasite infections, including ascariasis, pinworm infection, h ...

have shown promise in the treatment of ''Brugia timori'' filariasis. Some researchers are confident that ''Brugia timori'' filariasis may be an eradicable disease. Related filarial nematodes have been found highly sensitive to elimination of their endosymbiotic

Wolbachia ''Wolbachia'' is a genus of intracellular bacteria that infects mainly arthropod species, including a high proportion of insects, and also some nematodes. It is one of the most common parasitic microbes, and is possibly the most common reproduct ...

bacteria, and this may be a powerful attack route against ''Brugia timori'' as well.

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20080907114101/http://www.dhpe.org/infect/Lymphfil.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Brugia Timori Spirurida Parasitic nematodes of humans Insect-borne diseases Health in Indonesia Nematodes described in 1977