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Morphological and molecular studies of the life-cycle stages of the monorchiid Monorchis parvus (Looss, 1902) (Digenea) from the Southern Mediterranean coast (Tunisia)

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Abstract

The elucidation of life-cycles of digeneans, with their successive larval stages, is facilitated by the use of molecular markers. Samples of sporocysts containing cercariae and metacercariae belonging to Monorchis Monticelli, 1893 were collected from naturally infected bivalves, Cerastoderma glaucum (Bruguière, 1789), and adult forms of Monorchis spp. were collected from sparid fishes of the genus Diplodus. All specimens were collected in the Gulf of Gabès, southern Tunisia. The identities of the examined molluscs and fishes were determined via molecular barcoding of their COI gene. Sequences of COI and ITS1 genes were also obtained for both larval and adult stages of collected parasite specimens. Genetic sequence data generated for the collected larval specimens only differed minimally from the sequence data of adults identified as Monorchis parvus; we attribute the difference to intraspecific variation. The morpho-anatomical study showed that the different stages of M. parvus collected from the Tunisian coasts had the same morphology as those reported in European waters with a lag in maturity and lower measurements. The species is recorded and molecularly characterised for the first time off the Tunisian coasts.

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Data availability

All data are included in this published manuscript. The sequences obtained in this study are reported and available at the GenBank

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Sciences of Tunis, Laboratory of Diversity, Management and Conservation of Biological Systems, University of Tunis El Manar, LR18ES06, Tunis, Tunisia

    Soumaya Ben Youssef-Dridi, Rym Antar & Lamia Gargouri

  2. Service de Systématique Moléculaire, UMS 2700 CNRS, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Sorbonne Université, CP 26, 43 Rue Cuvier, 75231 Cedex 05, Paris, France

    Delphine Gey

  3. Institut de Systématique, Évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), MNHN, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, 57 Rue Cuvier, CP 51, 75005, Paris, France

    Jean-Lou Justine

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  1. Soumaya Ben Youssef-Dridi
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Contributions

Soumaya Ben Youssef Dridi: conception of research, field sampling, preparation of drawings, parasitological analysis and manuscript writing.

Rym Antar: preparation of drawings and parasitological analysis.

Delphine Gey: DNA extraction, PCR and sequencing.

Jean-Lou Justine: molecular and phylogenetic analyses, manuscript editing.

Lamia Gargouri: conception of research, methodology and supervision.

All authors approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Soumaya Ben Youssef-Dridi.

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Ben Youssef-Dridi, S., Antar, R., Gey, D. et al. Morphological and molecular studies of the life-cycle stages of the monorchiid Monorchis parvus (Looss, 1902) (Digenea) from the Southern Mediterranean coast (Tunisia). Parasitol Res 122, 2819–2833 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-07967-4

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