seeking parasites -Reply

[Karen Snowden]

In the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Vet
Medicine, the parasitologists maintain several parasites in culture,
and have some collected specimens.  We could possibly provide
cultured blood smears of Babesia bovis (bovine apicomplexa
protozoan), dog blood with Dirofilaria immitis microfilaria (canine
heartworm filarid nematode), tissue culture cells infected with the
microsporidia, Encephalitozoon cuniculi.  Variable numbers of fixed
gross specimens of various domestic animal ascarids (Parascaris
equorum, Toxocara canis etc), Fasciola hepatica (bovine liver fluke)
and Fascioloides magna, ruminant GI nematodes such as Haemonchus,
Ostertagia and Cooperia and a variety of domestic animal mites could
also be available either "in a jar", mounted, or mounted and stained.
 A few histologic sections of various organisms in domestic animal
tissues are available (Fasciola in liver/bile duct, Taenia saginata
cysticercus in bovine muscle, Trichinella in muscle, however costs
would be higher in order to cover our histologic costs.  

We are revising our parasitology laboratory teaching materials, and
could use 40 good sections of visceral leishmania in spleen or liver
histologic sections or touch impression smears, and also leishmania
cultured promastigotes.  After filling that need on a "swap" basis,
we would probably want to settle on a price/slide basis if you were
interested in any of the possible specimens that we could provide.  

Please contact me further if you are interested in a swap....

Karen Snowden
Dept of Vet Pathobiology
College of Vet Med
Texas A&M Univ

Phone  409 862-4999
FAX    409 862-2344
EMAIL  ksnowden at vetmed.tamu.edu