Reports of Tübingen students on their fieldwork in the Programme Onchocercoses laboratory in Ngaoundéré, Cameroon

Three students from the Tübingen University came to the Programme Onchocercoses laboratory in Ngaoundéré in the summer 2015 to do their practicals. They were assisted during their field work by Babette Abanda from the University of Ngaoundéré and Albert Eisenbarth and Alfons Renz from the Tübingen University.

Francois

 

Francois Korbmacher studied the occurrence of protozoan and bacterial pathogens in ticks: The predominant tick-species that bite on cattle  in Northern Cameroon, Amblyomma variegatum and Boophilus decoloratus, are vectors of Piroplasmidae, Rickettsiae, Anaplasma, Ehrlichia and, possibly, also Borrellia species.

Using consensus primers and a PCR-approach, Francois tried to identify positive ticks.

=> Read more about the work of Francois => Francois-Korbmacher-2015-Field report

 

 

 

 

Freya Labor

Freya Zettl

 

 

Freya Zettl  took video-movies of live microfilariae of various Onchocerca species. It is astonishing to notice, that different species have microfilariae of very different sizes and movements, though they are living in the same environment, the skin of cattle. However, they are transmitted by different species of blood-sucking arthropods (Simuliidae and Ceratopogonidae etc.). There must be a link between the size and movements of microfilariae and their specific vectors!

=> Read more about the work of Freya => Freya Zettl – Project Report-2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sophia Stiegler -2015

Sophia Stiegler injected microfilariae of Onchocerca ochengi into the thorax of neonate Simulium flies.

Even in those flies, which normally do not bite on man or cattle. The proportion of microfilariae surviving and developing to the L3-stage varies and is an indicator of the vectorial ability of Simulium species and strain.

=> Read more about the work of Sophia =>Report Sophia Stiegler-2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

Students-and-staff-2015

 

 

Students and staff  in the Programme Onchocercoses laboratory in Ngaoundéré.