Hiding in plain sight: discovery and phylogeography of a cryptic species of Trichinella (Nematoda: Trichinellidae) in wolverine (Gulo gulo).

Hiding in plain sight: discovery and phylogeography of a cryptic species of Trichinella (Nematoda: Trichinellidae) in wolverine (Gulo gulo). Int J Parasitol. 2020 Mar 11;: Authors: Sharma R, Thompson P, Hoberg EP, Brad Scandrett W, Konecsni K, Jane Harms N, Kukka PM, Jung TS, Elkin B, Mulders R, Larter NC, Branigan M, Pongracz J, Wagner B, Kafle P, Lobanov VA, Rosenthal BM, Jenkins EJ Abstract Understanding parasite diversity and distribution is essential in managing the potential impact of parasitic diseases in animals and people. Imperfect diagnostic methods, however, may conceal cryptic species. Here, we report the discovery and phylogeography of a previously unrecognized species of Trichinella in wolverine (Gulo gulo) from northwestern Canada that was indistinguishable from T. nativa using the standard multiplex PCR assay based on the expansion segment 5 (ESV) of ribosomal DNA. The novel genotype, designated as T13, was discovered when sequencing the mitochondrial genome. Phylogenetic analyses of the mitochondrial genome and of 15 concatenated single copy orthologs of nuclear DNA indicated a common ancestor for the encapsulated clade is shared by a subclade containing Trichinella spiralis and Trichinella nelsoni, and a subclade containing T13 and remaining taxa: T12 + (T2 +T6) + [(T5 + T9) + (T3 + T8)]. Of 95 individual hosts from 12 species of mammalian carnivores from northwestern Canada from which larvae were identified as T. ...
Source: International Journal for Parasitology - Category: Parasitology Authors: Tags: Int J Parasitol Source Type: research