Monogeneans in the northernmost neotropical lake: Unexplored species richness and freshwater fish host-parasite associations in Lake Catemaco
Description
This research presents a comprehensive characterization of the species richness of monogenean parasites infecting the ichthyofauna of six freshwater fish families from Lake Catemaco, Mexico, more than twenty-five years after the first documented introduction of exotic monogeneans into native fish populations. Through the analysis of Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) sequences, both specialist and generalist monogenean species were identified. Additionally, host-switching events were documented in several species, highlighting ongoing ecological interactions and adaptation processes. The study also led to the identification of previously undescribed monogenean species, contributing to the knowledge of parasite biodiversity in Neotropical freshwater ecosystems.
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Steps to reproduce
The ITS region of monogeneans parasites was amplified using primers BD1 and BD2 (Bowles and McManus, 1993; Bowles et al., 1995), with the Taq Platinum PCR kit (Invitrogen Co.) and a T100 thermal cycler (BIORAD). PCR products were sequenced by Sanger sequencing at Macrogen Corp. The resulting sequences were edited and assembled using GENEIOUS v8.1. Sequence alignment was performed with MAFFT v7.505, and phylogenetic reconstructions were carried out using IQ-TREE v2.2.0 and MrBayes v3.2.
Institutions
- Instituto de Ecologia