Susceptibility of an albinic variant of Biomphalaria glabrata from Belo Horizonte (MG), to infection by Schistosoma mansoni, from wild rodents of the Paraíba do Sul River Valley

Abstract

The present research confirms the susceptibility, in laboratory conditions, of an albinic variant of Biomphalaria glabrata from Belo Horizonte (MG), to the infection with a sample of Schistosoma mansoni obtained from wild rodents of the Paraíba do Sul River valley, in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. This account seems to be important, since it is generally thought that B. glabrata is not susceptible to samples of S. mansoni from the Paraíba do Sul River valley. In the discussion, some arguments are presented in an attempt to explain the establishment of Manson's schistosomiasis in the Paraíba do Sul River valley, a region where B. glabrata is absent and where B. tenagophila, a local species considered of weak susceptibility to the worm, is very frequent. Another matter discussed is the local existence of two strains of S. mansoni with different biological behaviours, the H strain of human origin and the S strain of wild local rodents.