Anthelmintic resistance in hair sheep farms in a sub-humid tropical climate, in the Huasteca Potosina, Mexico

Abstract This is the first report about anthelmintic resistance (AR) in hair sheep farms determined in a sub-humid tropical climate, in an area known as Huasteca Potosina, Mexico. Faecal egg count reduction tests (FECRT) and egg hatch in vitro tests were conducted to identify the level of AR against benzimidazole (BZ) in parasitic gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) populations. An allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (AS-PCR) was performed to obtain a 250 bp band, indicating resistance, and a 550 bp band, indicating susceptibility to BZ. Macrocyclic lactones (ML) and imidazothiazole (IMZ) drugs were also tested with the FECRT. A PROBIT analysis was conducted using SAS to determine the 50% lethal doses (LD 50 ) of the drugs according to the egg hatch in vitro test. Resistance to BZ and ML was found on all farms (0–70% effectiveness), whereas the susceptibility of nematodes to IMZ was detected with the FECRT (93–100% effectiveness). The LD 50 was higher than the discriminating dose (0.1 μg ml −1 ) for BZ and confirmed AR to this anthelmintic; we also confirmed a high AR frequency with AS-PCR. Therefore, we suggest that strategic deworming should be performed to avoid the development of resistance to imidazothiazole.