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Amphimerus lancea as a Potential Etiological Agent of Human Amphimerosis in South America: A Morphological Analysis Based on Literature Data

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Abstract

Purpose

Despite recent advances in the study of amphimerosis, aspects related to the taxonomy of the opisthorchiid species involved in human infection in Ecuador are not completely known. In the present study, previous morphological descriptions of Amphimerus sp. found in human beings and animals from Ecuador were re-studied, aiming to the identification of the parasite.

Methods

The morphological traits and measures of isolates of Amphimerus from Ecuadorian foci of transmission previously reported by different authors were critically analyzed and used to achieve the specific identification of the parasite. Morphological and morphometric data, including measures of structures, ratio between suckers, and disposition of vitellaria, were used for taxonomic identification based on taxonomic keys, reviews, and descriptive works.

Results

The morphological study based on literature data reveals that Amphimerus lancea (Diesing, 1850) is a species potentially involved in human amphimerosis in Ecuador. The main characteristics here used for differential diagnoses of this species is the larger size of the ventral sucker, which results in an oral sucker/ventral sucker ratio in isolates here considered as A. lancea (1.8–2.7) higher than those verified in other seven species of the genus Amphimerus reported in South America (0.5–1.3). The relative space that the ventral sucker occupies in relation to body width (at the level of ventral sucker) is also greater in A. lancea (49–64% vs 15–38%).

Conclusion

Amphimerus lancea is at least one of the species involved in human amphimerosis in Ecuador. The parasite distribution and animal reservoirs are updated and the possibility of new areas of occurrence of human diseases in South America is highlighted. Future integrative taxonomic studies using material properly fixed is encouraged, which can corroborate the morphological identification here achieved and result in progress in the complex taxonomy of Amphimerus spp.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) (research scholarship to HAP).

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  1. Laboratório de Biologia de Trematoda, Department of Parasitology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Hudson Alves Pinto

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Correspondence to Hudson Alves Pinto.

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Pinto, H.A. Amphimerus lancea as a Potential Etiological Agent of Human Amphimerosis in South America: A Morphological Analysis Based on Literature Data. Acta Parasit. 66, 277–281 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11686-020-00264-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11686-020-00264-5

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