Tradition and innovation: selamectin plus sarolaner. A new tool to control endo- and ectoparasites of cats – a European perspective

VeterinaryParasitology238(2017)S1–S2

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Veterinary

Parasitology

j o ur na l ho me p a g e :w w w . e l s e v i e r . c o m / l o c a t e / v e t p a r

Editorial

Tradition

and

innovation:

selamectin

plus

sarolaner.

A

new

tool

to

control

endo-

and

ectoparasites

of

cats

–

a

European

perspective

Amongstinfectiousagents,parasitesaremajorplayers threat-eningthehealthandwelfare ofcats.Thisiswellrecognisedby practitionersandpetownersand,forthepotentialroleofsome parasitesaszoonoticagents,alsobyphysiciansworkingin Pub-licHealth,atalllatitudes,fromthepooresttotherichestsettings. Indeed,manyparasitesofcatsarezoonoticagentsinfectinghumans frompregnancy(toxoplasmosis),throughchildhood(Toxocaraspp. and Ancylostomaspp.), and allthroughlife (e.g.,echinococcosis fromaccidentalingestionofembryonatedeggs).Mostimportantly, catssharetheirenvironmentwitharthropodparasites(ticks,mites, fleas,andmosquitoes)thatalsofeedonhumans,therebyacting as potential vectorsof viral, bacterial,protozoal, and helminth pathogens.Therefore,catsandtheirbestfriends,humans,arethe maincharactersinthistheatrepiece(humanandanimal parasitol-ogy);theylivetogetherwiththeirparasites.Thestageforsucha pieceisthewholeworldfromtheBrazilianforests,totheRocky Mountains,throughthecosyhistoricalItalianvillages,tothe savan-nahvillages, theRomanian mountains, thefreezingKamchatka peninsulasmalltowns,andinthesouthAsiantropicalcountries.

Althoughthereismuchlessinformationonparasitismincats comparedtodogs,parasitesarerathercommonincats, depend-ingontheirhabits(stray orownedcatsorindividuals livingin catteries),geographical areasor provenience,environment and, obviously,theuseofparasiticides.Theoverallprevalenceofcat endoparasitesinEurope(from20to40%)hasbeencalculatedin anumberofstudiesbasedoncoproscopicexamination.Fleasare themainectoparasites(upto70% ofcatssufferfleainfestation inAustria,SpainandGermany)whereasthedistributionoftick speciesincatsdependsonwherestudiesarecarriedout,withIxodes ricinusandRhipicephalusspp.(i.e.,R.turanicusandR.sanguineus sensulato), beingthemostprevalentin Europe.Untilrecently, detailedclinicalefficacyandfieldstudieshavenotbeenrequired intheEuropeanUnion(EU)forthelicensureoftickclaimsforcats ifdatawereavailablefortheproductin dogs.Theclinicalfield studiesincludedinthis volumeprovide up-to-dateinformation ontheactualincidenceofticksoncatsintheEUfrom270cats enrolledwithtickinfestationsinpracticesinFrance,Italy,Hungary andGermany.

Effectiveectoparasiticides,aloneorincombination,havebeen formulatedinthelastdecadesforcats.Productsoftentargetfleas; theseincludefipronil,whichisalsoefficaciousagainstticks, imida-cloprid,lufenuron,andspinosad,andtheendectocide,selamectin, whichhasbroad-spectrumactivityagainsthelminths,fleas,and

mitesbutnotticks.Recently,anewclassofectoparasiticideshas beenintroduced:theisoxazolines(e.g.,fluralaner,afoxalanerand sarolaner),withefficacyagainstfleasand ticks.Thereare other lesscommonlicensedproductsfortickpreventionincatssuchas diazinon-andflumethrin-basedcollars.

Endo-andectoparasitesofcatsarearather frequentfinding withco-infectionsoccurringoften.Thuseffectivebroad-spectrum productswithefficacyagainstthemajorendo-andectoparasitesof catsareneededtoensurethehealthandwellbeingofcatsandtheir owners.InthissupplementtoVeterinaryParasitologyacollection ofselectedpapersillustratesthegreatpotentialofanewtopical combination which mergestradition andinnovation:selamectin plussarolaner.Thisbroad-spectrumantiparasiticdrugisnow avail-ableforthetreatmentandpreventionofendo-andectoparasites ofcats.Selamectin(REVOLUTION®orSTRONGHOLD®,Zoetis)has beeninthemarketasatopicalsolutionsince1999forthe treat-mentandpreventionoffleas,preventionofheartwormdisease,and thetreatmentofOtodectescynotis,Toxocaracati,andAncylostoma tubaeformeincats.Theefficacyspectrumofthiswell-known prod-ucthasnowbeenbroadenedtoincludeticksbytheadditionofa newisoxozaline,sarolaner.

Resultsofthestudiesincludedinthisissueclearlyindicatethata singlespot-onapplicationofthisnewproductisefficaciousforthe treatmentandpreventionoffleainfestationsfor5weeks,forthe treatmentandpreventionofI.ricinusandI.hexagonusfor5weeks, forthetreatmentandpreventionofDermacentorreticulatusandR. sanguineusfor4weeks,forthetreatmentofearmiteinfestations byOtodectescynotis,andforthetreatmentofadultroundworms (Toxocaracati)andadultintestinalhookworms(Ancylostoma tubae-forme).

Laboratorystudieshavebeencorroboratedbyfieldstudiesin whichtheefficacyoftreatmentsatmonthlyintervalsofthisnew productagainstfleaandtickinfestationshasbeentestedincats presentedaspatientsinEuropeanveterinaryclinics.Inthefield studies,thenewproductwasfoundtobesafeandhighlyeffective againstnaturalinfestationsoffleasandticksoncats.Rapidefficacy againstfleas(within24hofinfestation)makestheproduct use-fulaspartofatreatmentstrategyforpreventingenvironmental fleacontaminationandforthecontroloffleaallergicdermatitis,as demonstratedbyclinicaldatainthefieldstudy.

Theeaseofapplicationofaspot-onproductisabenefitthat cannotbeunderestimatedwhentreatingfelinepatients.Spot-on productsareoftenbettertoleratedbycatsandhenceeasierfor http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2017.03.006

0304-4017/©2017TheAuthor(s).PublishedbyElsevierB.V.ThisisanopenaccessarticleundertheCCBY-NC-NDlicense(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/

S2 Editorial/VeterinaryParasitology238(2017)S1–S2

ownerstoadministercomparedtooralproductsandtoproducts thatmustbeapplieddirectlytoanaffectedarea(suchasforear mites).Inaddition,aspot-onproductovercomessomeoftheissues withcollars,suchasintolerancebysomecatsandpotentiallossof thecollar.Thebenefitsofaspot-onproduct,especiallyonewitha broadspectrumofactivityandalowrateofadverseeffects,increase ownercomplianceandimproveprotectionofcatsagainst endo-andectoparasites.

Thebroad-spectrumefficacyprovided bythecombination of selamectinplussarolaner,alongwiththeeaseofamonthly spot-onapplication,ensurestheprotectionofcatsagainstendo-and ectoparasitesandprovidespetownersandpractitionerswithanew tooltofurtherimprovecathealthandwelfare.

Conflictofinterest

Zoetis supported the editorial assistance provided by Dr. DomenicoOtrantoandDr.SusanLittle.

DomenicoOtranto∗ DepartmentofVeterinaryMedicine,Universityof Bari,Italy SusanLittle BytownCatHospital,Ottawa,Canada

∗_{Correspondingauthor.}

E-mailaddress:domenico.otranto@uniba.it (D.Otranto)