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April 23, 2019
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Detection of Thelazia callipaeda in Phortica variegata and spread of canine thelaziosis to new areas in Spain

Publicated to:Parasites & Vectors. 11 (1): 195- - 2018-03-20 11(1), DOI: 10.1186/s13071-018-2773-0

Authors: Marino, Valentina; Galvez, Rosa; Colella, Vito; Sarquis, Juliana; Checa, Rocio; Montoya, Ana; Barrera, Juan P; Dominguez, Sonia; Lia, Riccardo Paolo; Otranto, Domenico; Miro, Guadalupe

Affiliations

Univ Bari, Dept Vet Med, Bari, Italy - Author
Univ Complutense Madrid, Dept Anim Hlth, Fac Vet Med, Madrid, Spain - Author
Universidad Complutense de Madrid - Author
Universita degli Studi di Bari - Author

Abstract

© 2018 The Author(s). Background: The fruit fly Phortica variegata (Drosophilidae: Steganinae) feeds on the ocular secretions of animals and humans, and has been described as an intermediate host of the eye worm Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida: Thelaziidae) in Italy. Despite the increased detection of T. callipaeda in many European countries, information about its vector role in natural conditions is still limited. In the Iberian Peninsula, thelaziosis caused by T. callipaeda has been reported in dogs, cats, red foxes, wild rabbits and humans. Methods: In the last seven years, we have detected increased numbers of cases of canine thelaziosis at three locations in mainland Spain: Site 1, La Vera region (Cáceres Province, central-western Spain; 51 cases); Site 2, El Escorial municipality (Madrid Community, central Spain; 23 cases); and Site 3, Miraflores de la Sierra municipality (Madrid Community, central Spain; 41 cases). Site 1 is considered endemic for T. callipaeda while the other two sites have been recently recognised as risk zones for T. callipaeda infection. Results: From June 2016 to September 2017, 2162 flies were collected and morphologically identified as Phortica spp. (Site 1, n = 395; Site 2, n = 1544; and Site 3, n = 223). Upon dissection, third-stage T. callipaeda larvae were found in two out of 155 flies examined from Site 1, and both these larvae tested molecularly positive for the eye worm. Of the 395 flies collected from Site 1, 371 were molecularly processed for arthropod species identification and T. callipaeda detection. All 371 flies were identified as P. variegata and 28 (7.5%; 95% CI: 4.8-10%) tested positive for T. callipaeda DNA haplotype 1. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that T. callipaeda circulates among dogs and P. variegata in Spain, where zoonotic cases have been also reported. The co-existence of canine thelaziosis and Phortica spp. in geographical areas previously considered free of the eye worm indicates a risk of infection for both animals and humans living in this region.

Keywords

autochthonous caseseyewormsfliespcrphortica variegataspainthelazia callipaedaAutochthonous casesEyewormsFliesPcrPhortica variegataSpainThelazia callipaedaVector

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Parasites & Vectors due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2018, it was in position 2/21, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Tropical Medicine. Notably, the journal is positioned above the 90th percentile.

From a relative perspective, and based on the normalized impact indicator calculated from World Citations provided by WoS (ESI, Clarivate), it yields a value for the citation normalization relative to the expected citation rate of: 1.85. This indicates that, compared to works in the same discipline and in the same year of publication, it ranks as a work cited above average. (source consulted: ESI Nov 14, 2024)

This information is reinforced by other indicators of the same type, which, although dynamic over time and dependent on the set of average global citations at the time of their calculation, consistently position the work at some point among the top 50% most cited in its field:

  • Weighted Average of Normalized Impact by the Scopus agency: 1.56 (source consulted: FECYT Feb 2024)
  • Field Citation Ratio (FCR) from Dimensions: 4.06 (source consulted: Dimensions Jul 2025)

Specifically, and according to different indexing agencies, this work has accumulated citations as of 2025-07-17, the following number of citations:

  • WoS: 24
  • Scopus: 28
  • Europe PMC: 16
  • Google Scholar: 29

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-07-17:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 41.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 44 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 7.5.
  • The number of mentions on the social network X (formerly Twitter): 2 (Altmetric).

It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

  • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.

Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Italy.