Molecular confirmation of pearl formation in arctic mussels (Mytilus edulis) caused by Gymnophallus bursicola (Odhner 1900) metacercariae

Abstract In recent field studies, suspected gymnophallid metacercariae were histologically located in the mantle of mussels from the Norwegian Sea. Mussels from the sites in which that infection was detected also presented abnormally high pearl numbers. It has been previously described that gymnopha...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Parasitology
Main Authors: BENITO, Denis, IZAGIRRE, Urtzi, LEKUBE, Xabier, ZALDIBAR, Benat, VILLALBA, Antonio, DE MONTAUDOUIN, Xavier, DAFFE, Guillemine, SOTO, Manu, DIAZ DE CERIO, Oihane
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2023
Subjects:
bivalve molluscs
blue mussel
COI sequence
encapsulation
SSU-rDNA
trematodes
Sciences de l'environnement
Arctic
Norwegian Sea
Tromsø
Online Access:https://oskar-bordeaux.fr/handle/20.500.12278/184837
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12278/184837
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0031182023000860
Description
Summary:Abstract In recent field studies, suspected gymnophallid metacercariae were histologically located in the mantle of mussels from the Norwegian Sea. Mussels from the sites in which that infection was detected also presented abnormally high pearl numbers. It has been previously described that gymnophallid metacercariae could cause pearl formation processes in mussels, as a host reaction to encapsulate these metacercariae. Given the pathological host reaction these parasites elicit, a study was performed to identify gymnophallid metacercariae found in mussels collected from Tromsø at morphological and molecular level and to assess, by the use of molecular tools, the relationship between the parasite and the biological material inside the pearls. As a result, Gymnophallus bursicola metacercariae infecting Norwegian Mytilus edulis were identified according to morphological characters, along with the first 18S rDNA and COI sequences for this trematode species. In addition, parasite DNA from the core of the pearls was extracted and amplified for the first time, confirming the parasitological origin of these pearls. This procedure could allow identifying different parasitic organisms responsible for the generation of pearls in bivalves.

Similar Items