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Redescription and genetic characterization of selected Contracaecum spp. (Nematoda: Anisakidae) from various hosts in Australia

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Abstract

In the present study, five species of Contracaecum Railliet & Henry 1912 (Nematoda: Ascaridida), including Contracaecum bancrofti, Contracaecum microcephalum, Contracaecum variegatum, Contracaecum eudyptulae, and Contracaecum ogmorhini, were redescribed using light and scanning electron microscopy. In addition, in order to elucidate their taxonomic status, first and second internal transcribed spacers (ITS-1 and ITS-2, respectively) of nuclear ribosomal DNA of each morphospecies were characterized. Analyses of sequence and morphological data sets suggested that C. bancrofti, infecting the Australian pelican Pelecanus conspicillatus, is a valid species and is distinct from C. micropapillatum reported from pelicans in the northern hemisphere. C. microcephalum from cormorants Phalacrocorax melanoleucos and C. variegatum from the darter Anhinga melanogaster and from P. conspicillatus as well as C. eudyptulae from the little penguin Eudyptula minor were also considered as distinct species, which can be differentiated from one another morphologically based on the lengths of spicules and genetically based on the sequences of ITS-1 and ITS-2. Comparison of sequence data of ITS-1 and ITS-2 for the members of C. ogmorhini sensu lato from pinnipeds with those of previous studies suggested that only ITS-2 can be used for differentiation between C. ogmorhini sensu stricto and Contracaecum margolisi, occurring in the southern and northern hemispheres, respectively. Analyses of the ITS-1 and ITS-2 sequence data of Contracaecum spp. in the present study supported the distinction among species of Contracaecum based on morphological data and were useful in confirming the taxonomic status of individual species in Australia.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Professors Lia Paggi and Hans-Peter Fagerholm for discussions. Shokoofeh Shamsi was a grateful recipient of scholarships from the University of Melbourne.

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Author notes

  1. Shokoofeh Shamsi

    Present address: Department of Aquatic Animal Health, Iranian Fisheries Research Institute, P. O. Box 14155-6116, Tehran, Iran

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ministry of Aquaculture and Forestry, Biosecurity, New Zealand, Wellington, New Zealand

    Richard Norman

  2. Department of Veterinary Science, The University of Melbourne, 250 Princes Highway, Werribee, Victoria, 3030, Australia

    Shokoofeh Shamsi, Robin Gasser & Ian Beveridge

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  1. Shokoofeh Shamsi
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  2. Richard Norman
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  3. Robin Gasser
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shokoofeh Shamsi.

Additional information

Nucleotide sequence data reported in this paper are available in the GenBank database under the accession numbers EU839566–EU839573, FM177523–FM177578, and FM177880–FM177888.

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Shamsi, S., Norman, R., Gasser, R. et al. Redescription and genetic characterization of selected Contracaecum spp. (Nematoda: Anisakidae) from various hosts in Australia. Parasitol Res 104, 1507–1525 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-009-1357-5

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