ULTRASTRUCTURAL MORPHOLOGY OF SARCOSPORIDIOSIS IN ALPINE IBEX (CAPRA IBEX)

The authors describe the ultrastructural morphology of the cyst wall o f sarcocysts in the muscles from Ibex, found dead and sent to this dep artment to be examined. Several samples of the diaphragm were taken fr om 52 Ibex of different age and sex, one Hispanic and the others from the Gran Paradise National Park (GPNP). The samples were prepared for electron microscopy after testing for sarcocystiosis through extempora neous microscopic examination. Eighty-six percent were positive. The m orphology of the cyst wall led to the identification of three types of sarcocysts in the Ibex of the GPNP and a further type in the Hispanic one. The morphology of the sarcocysts wall is similar to the wall of the species described in the domestic ruminants from several authors. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.