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Review
. 2017 Jun 20;10(1):297.
doi: 10.1186/s13071-017-2234-1.

A review of Sarcoptes scabiei: past, present and future

Larry G Arlian  1 , Marjorie S Morgan  2
Affiliations
Review

A review of Sarcoptes scabiei: past, present and future

Larry G Arlian et al. Parasit Vectors. .

Abstract

The disease scabies is one of the earliest diseases of humans for which the cause was known. It is caused by the mite, Sarcoptes scabiei, that burrows in the epidermis of the skin of humans and many other mammals. This mite was previously known as Acarus scabiei DeGeer, 1778 before the genus Sarcoptes was established (Latreille 1802) and it became S. scabiei. Research during the last 40 years has tremendously increased insight into the mite's biology, parasite-host interactions, and the mechanisms it uses to evade the host's defenses. This review highlights some of the major advancements of our knowledge of the mite's biology, genome, proteome, and immunomodulating abilities all of which provide a basis for control of the disease. Advances toward the development of a diagnostic blood test to detect a scabies infection and a vaccine to protect susceptible populations from becoming infected, or at least limiting the transmission of the disease, are also presented.

Keywords: Biology; Diagnostic test; Host-parasite interaction; Host-seeking behavior; Immune modulation; Infectivity; Nutrition; Sarcoptes scabiei; Vaccine.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Scanning electron micrographs of female Sarcoptes scabiei var. hominis (a), S. scabiei var. suis (b) and S. scabiei var. canis (c, d) showing dorsal spines, coarse cuticular striations and internal scapular lamellate setae (sci), dorsal setae (d1) and the dorsal shield (DS). Scale-bars: a, 100 μm; b, 10 μm; c, 100 μm; d, 10 μm
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Scanning electron micrographs of female Sarcoptes scabiei var. canis. a Legs I and II showing tarsus with claws (c) and stalked empodium (e) that terminates in a pad. b Legs III and IV showing two claws (c) and long seta (s) on the tarsus. c Gnathasoma (pedipalps and chelicerae) and leg I. Scale-bars: a, 10 μm; b, 10 μm; c, 10 μm
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Scanning electron micrograph (posterior view) of female Sarcoptes scabiei var. canis in a burrow in the stratum corneum showing the dorsal terminal anal opening (a) and copulatory papilla (cp) of the bursa copulatrix. Scale-bar: 10 μm
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Observed time to achieve 100% mortality in test populations of female S. scabiei var. canis mites exposed to specific combinations of temperature and relative humidity (RH). The number of mites in each test group ranged from 8 to 26. Data from [20]
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