The taxonomic identity and phylogenetic relationships of Cercaria pugnax and C. helvetica XII (Digenea: Lecitho-dendriidae) based on morphological and molecular data

Abstract

Abstract:The present study analysed the taxonomic status and phylogenetic relationships of two species of xiphidiocercariae of the ʻmicrocotylaeʼ group, Cercaria pugnax La Valette St. George, 1855, from Viviparus viviparus (Linnaeus) in the Ukraine and Cercaria helvetica XII Dubois, 1928 from Bithynia tentaculata (Linnaeus) in Lithuania. Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on sequences of the ITS2 region and partial 28S gene of the nuclear rDNA revealed that both these xiphidiocercariae belong to the Lecithodendriidae Lühe, 1901 and represent larval stages of lecithodendriids parasitic in bats. Cercaria helvetica XII clustered with the typical representatives of the genus Lecithodendrium Looss, 1896, being very close, but not identical, to Lecithodendrium linstowi Dollfus, 1931. Sequences of C. pugnax matched exactly the sequences of adult Paralecithodendrium chilostomum (Mehlis, 1831). Morphological descriptions of the cercariae are included; these represent the first report of non-virgulate xiphidiocercariae belonging to the family Lecithodendriidae. Until now, the presence of glandular virgula organ in the region of the oral sucker was considered a robust synapomorphy for the Lecithodendriidae and several closely related families. Our results have shown that the relative importance of this character is in need of a re-assessment.

Different thermal conditions of lakes affect host–parasite systems: A case study of Viviparus contectus (Millet, 1813) and digenean trematodes

“…Paracoenogonimus ovatus, A. exile, and N. echinatoides use waterfowl as final hosts (Kozicka & Niewiadomska, 1958;Kudlai, 2009;Pojmańska, 1972). By contrast, the transmission of P. chilostomum occurs between intermediate hosts, including viviparid snails (Kudlai et al, 2015) and subsequently caddisflies (Brown, 1933), as well as bats playing a role of the final hosts (Frank et al, 2015). An example that illustrates this is echinocercariae that usually appear in the middle of summer (Żbikowska & Żbikowski, 2015), which is also confirmed by our research in the case of N. echinatoides.…”

“…Moreover, the seasonal occurrence of echinocercariae in the middle of summer, which are a heavy burden for snail hosts (Żbikowska, 2011), may also result in a decrease in prevalence during this period. By contrast, the transmission of P. chilostomum occurs between intermediate hosts, including viviparid snails (Kudlai et al, 2015) and subsequently caddisflies (Brown, 1933), as well as bats playing a role of the final hosts (Frank et al, 2015). The present results show that the body size and fecundity of viviparid hosts follow the increase in water temperature, while, surprisingly, the higher temperature does not automatically give rise to species-rich trematode communities and parasite infection dynamics.…”

“…The wet weight of each snail was measured to the nearest 0.01 g using an electronic balance. Kozicka & Niewiadomska, 1958;Kudlai, Stunzenas, & Tkach, 2015;Pojmańska, 1972). The role of viviparid snails in the transmission of digenean larvae was determined as follows: (a) snails serving as first intermediate hosts (1 IH…”

Feeding and parasitism of adultStenoperlaspp. (Plecoptera: Eustheniidae) in New Zealand

“…Most, if not all trematode species encysting in stoneflies belong to the family Lecithodendriidae (order Plagiorchiida), which use prosobranch snails as first intermediate hosts and encyst in a variety of aquatic insects (Mariluan et al ). Although some species use amphibians as hosts (Anderson et al ), lecithodendriids are most commonly parasites of bats (Chiroptera) (Burns ; Chae et al ; Kudlai et al ), which are thought to become infected by eating parasitised adults following their emergence.…”

Molecular identification of morphologically similar microcercous cercariae of two trematode families, Paragonimidae and Troglotrematidae, concurrently found in the same snail species of the subfamily Triculinae

“…Generally, it is possible to identify cercarial specimens to the family level, and occasionally to the genus level, using morphological criteria, but it is not easy to differentiate cercariae of related genera/species based on their morphology alone (Frandsen and Christensen 1984). Alternatively, molecular techniques have been used to support the morphological identification (e.g., Bartoli et al 2000, Pina et al 2007, Chuboon and Wongsawad 2009, Kudlai et al 2015, Blasco-Costa et al 2016, Chontananarth et al 2017, Doanh et al 2018.…”