Morphological and pathological appraisal of Huffmanela sp. (Nematoda: Trichosomoididae) infecting orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides, Hamilton, 1822) at Jubail Province, Saudi Arabia: a case report

Abstract

This paper is conducted for identifying the parasite which collected during regular routine inspection for the hygienic condition and health status of sh in 2019 at the central sh market shops at Jubail city, Saudi Arabia. Samples from an orange spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) sh showed heavy black streaks between the muscle bers that was considered unmarketable and rejected by the consumer after had been cut and prepared for sealing. The black discolorations were in the form of heavy diffused focal black spots or forming threads of variable sizes embedded in the entire whole-body musculature of the sh. These samples were subjected to parasitological and pathological evaluation. The parasitological examination of the affected muscular tissues revealed Huffmanela spp. eggs infection. The parasitic infestation was identi ed on the bases of the morphological and ultra-structural characters of the eggs. The histopatholgical investigation of the dark discoloration of the muscular tissues showed severe diffused multifocal granulomatous myositis reactions in the form of chronic in ammatory response accompanied with brous connective tissue proliferation around the eggs and larvae together with lymphocytes and macrophages aggregation. Muscular necrosis, edema and evidence of muscular regeneration were also noticed. In conclusion; this case report con rmed the occurrence of Huffmanela spp. infection in the muscles of Epinephelus coioides by using light and scanning electron microscopy.Further molecular assessment is recommended.

Huffmanela sp. (Nematoda: Trichosomoididae: Huffmanelinae) encountered in the whitecheek shark (Carcharhinus dussumieri) in the Arabian Gulf

“…are nematode parasites affecting elasmobranch species, including sharks ( Pollerspöck, 2012 ). The genus Huffmanela Moravec, 1987 comprises 21 valid species ( Ruiz & Bullard, 2013 ; Ruiz et al ., 2013 ; Justine & Iwaki, 2014 ; Ramos et al ., 2019 ), diagnosed by the size and shape of their eggs, taking into consideration host range and site of infection ( Bullard et al ., 2012 ; Ruiz et al ., 2013 ; Justine & Iwaki, 2014 ; Attia et al ., 2021 ). This histozoic nematode deposits its eggs in specific organs, inducing characteristic pathological lesions, easily seen with the naked eye ( Moravec et al ., 1998 ; Moravec & Garibaldi, 2000 ; Bullard et al ., 2012 ).…”

A new species of Huffmanela (Nematoda: Trichosomoididae) parasitizing Colomesus psittacus (Tetraodontiformes) from Marajó Island, Pará State, Brazil

“…In Trisopterus luscus Esteves et al (2009) observed in myodegeneration, necrosis, calcification and small granulomas with parasites; fish with hyperinfection showed diffuse histiocytic infiltrate and fibrosis, while fish skin, intestinal serosa and swim bladder showed no abnormalities; Bullard et al (2012) observed intraepithelial inflammation with eosinophilic granulocytes and hyperplasia as well as lymphofollicular hyperplasia in the dermis of Carcharhinus plumbeus. Eissa et al (2021) observed hemorrhagic, necrotic, and chronic inflammatory cell aggregations in the tissue surrounding the swim bladder, as well as tunnels of necrotic tissue that contained the eggs; Attia et al (2021b) observed an intense granulomatous reaction with infiltration of mononuclear inflammatory cells and proliferation of fibrous connective tissue in the histopathology of the muscle fibers of Epinephelus coioides containing the nematodes and eggs. In the histological analysis of the gills of C. psittacus, in this study, numerous eggs were observed between the lamellae, which may have caused hyperplasia of the squamous epithelium of the primary and secondary filaments.…”

Nematode eggshells: A new anatomical and terminological framework, with a critical review of relevant literature and suggested guidelines for the interpretation and reporting of eggshell imagery

“…Some other species, like H. oleumimica [96] in figs. [8], have stump-like Superficial Papillae that are wider than long and irregularly spaced. However, the "unevenly dispersed, minute, stub-like eggshell spines" reported for H. oleumimica may not be surface projections (the Uterine Layer and Pellicula Ovi are both smooth in all other LM and SEM imagery and drawings), but possibly refraction artifacts caused by cocci adhered to the surface of the Uterine Layer (some seem to be arranged in short strings).…”

“…Examples include a description of the eggshells of Huffmanela sp. in Attia et al (2021) [8] as having, ". .…”

“…Anyone interested in surveying fish for helminths should familiarize themselves with the gross appearance of typical lesions caused by Huffmanela spp. infection by perusal of imagery provided in many papers [3,7,8,24,34,37,57,64,90,91,95,96].…”