**1. Introduction**

Sarcoptic mange is a parasitic skin disease that has been described in several species of domestic and wild mammals, and it is also a zoonosis that a ffects humans. It is caused by the burrowing mite *Sarcoptes scabiei*, which has caused epizootics involving high morbidity and mortality rates in some wild mammal populations, mainly ungulate species [1,2]. Di fferent host species, and even individuals within the same species, show variations in the severity and location of the lesions. For example, studies in the Southern UK [3] and Northern Spain [4,5] have reported that the disease manifests predominantly as hyperkeratotic lesions (type I hypersensitivity) in wild ungulates such as chamois and red deer, but as alopecic lesions (type IV hypersensitivity) in the wolf and fox. Nevertheless, hyperkeratotic lesions are also commonly observed in foxes [3,5,6].

Species and individual di fferences have been attributed to di fferences in the immune response [7], clinical stage [6,8] and concomitant presence of immunosuppressive pathogens [9]. In fact, *S. scabiei* itself can modulate various aspects of the mammalian innate and adaptive immune responses [10]. Identifying what immune responses are triggered upon infestation with *S. scabiei* and their relative efficacy may improve our understanding of disease course. The most common immune response in ectoparasite-associated systemic or local dermatitis in response to mites and its products is recruitment of eosinophils together with mast cells, typical of type I hypersensitivity [11]. Langerhans cells in the epidermis internalize sarcoptic antigen and migrate to regional lymph nodes, where they stimulate T cells [12]. In humans, the combined action of macrophages, T lymphocytes, and eosinophils can limit mite numbers and lesions [13]. Other inflammatory cells observed in mange lesions are plasma cells and B lymphocytes, which produce immunoglobulins that participate in the humoral immune response [14,15].

The main goal of this study was to analyze relative proportions of macrophages, plasma cells, as well as T and B lymphocytes in the skin of the wolf, fox, chamois and red deer from Asturias (Northern Spain) that were naturally infested with *S. scabiei*. The results may help us understand why infestation leads to di fferent skin lesion patterns in certain species, which in turn may help guide efforts to manage the disease, i.e., treatment following capture in the wild of most susceptible species.

#### **2. Materials and Methods**
