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Effects of Goussia infecting the blue whiting and phylogenetic placement of Goussia infecting marine fish off Northern Portugal

  • Fish Parasitology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Coccidian parasites of fish have received considerably less attention than their terrestrial counterparts, and within piscine hosts, most studies have focused on freshwater fish. The present study aimed to describe oocyst morphology, phylogenetic affinities, and the impacts of coccidian parasites infecting the internal organs of a commercially valuable marine fish, the blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou), captured off the Portuguese coast. As part of the phylogenetic analysis, sequences from coccidians infecting the pout (Trisopterus luscus) and the Atlantic chub mackerel (Scomber colias) were included, and the oocyst morphology of the coccidians infecting the former was also reported. Results showed that the prevalence of coccidiosis in the blue whiting was very high (> 82%), occurring in all analyzed organs, despite being more abundant in the liver. A significant negative correlation was found between the abundance of the parasites in the liver and host condition index (p < 0.05), which indicates a negative effect on the fitness of this host. Phylogenetic analyses of the parasites found in all three species examined identified three different species of Goussia, closely related to Goussia clupearum. Adding to previous research, we propose the existence of a fourth group of Goussia, the clupearum type, able to infect multiple organs and phylogenetic related with G. clupearum.

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All sequences generated in this work will be deposited in GenBank upon acceptance.

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Funding

This research was partially supported by national funds through FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology within the scope of UIDB/04423/2020 and UIDP/04423/2020, and also the Programa Operacional Potencial Humano - Quadro de Referência Estratégico Nacional funds from the European Social Fund and Portuguese Ministério da Educação e Ciência (RX: IF/00359/2015; AP doctoral grant: SFRH/BD/144928/2019).

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Correspondence to Raquel Xavier or Aurélia Saraiva.

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Section Editor: Una Ryan

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Xavier, R., Cardoso, J., Barroso, R. et al. Effects of Goussia infecting the blue whiting and phylogenetic placement of Goussia infecting marine fish off Northern Portugal. Parasitol Res 119, 2139–2147 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-020-06727-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-020-06727-y

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