Molecular and morphological description of Sarcocystis kutkienae sp. nov. from the common raven ( Corvus corax )
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PROTOZOOLOGY - ORIGINAL PAPER
Molecular and morphological description of Sarcocystis kutkienae sp. nov. from the common raven (Corvus corax) Petras Prakas 1
&
Dalius Butkauskas 1 & Evelina Juozaitytė-Ngugu 1
Received: 1 June 2020 / Accepted: 21 October 2020 # Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Until now, two Sarcocystis species, S. cornixi and S. corvusi, were known to employ members of the family Corvidae as intermediate hosts. Between 2013 and 2019, having examined leg muscles of 23 common ravens in Lithuania, sarcocysts were detected in 18 birds (78.3%). Using light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and molecular analysis (three genetic loci, 18S rDNA, 28S rDNA, and ITS1), sarcocysts found in the common raven were described as a new species S. kutkienae. Under a light microscope, the observed sarcocysts were ribbon-shaped (1500–8147 × 53–79 μm) and had a wavy striated cyst wall that reached up to 1.5 μm. Lancet-shaped bradyzoites were 7.7 × 2.2 μm (6.1–9.0 × 1.2–3.0 μm) in size. Ultrastructurally, the sarcocyst wall was 1.5–1.8 μm in thickness and had conical-like protrusions with minute invaginations of a parasitophorous vacuolar membrane. The cyst wall was type 1e-like. Limited genetic variability was observed between the 18S rDNA and 28S rDNA sequences of S. kutkienae and other Sarcocystis spp. using birds as intermediate hosts. In contrast, S. kutkienae could be clearly identified by comparing sequences. At this locus, sequences of S. kutkienae shared the highest similarity (89.5–89.7%) with those of S. cornixi. Phylogenetic analysis showed that S. kutkienae was most closely related to Sarcocystis spp. that employs birds as intermediate and definitive hosts. The issue relating to which species might serve as definitive hosts of S. kutkienae in Lithuania is addressed. Keywords Sarcocystis . Common raven . Electron microscopy . rDNA . ITS1 . Phylogeny
Introduction Members of the genus Sarcocystis are intracellular protozoan parasites distinguished by a two-host prey-predator life cycle. Asexual multiplication with sarcocyst formation occurs in the intermediate host, while sexual stages develop in the small intestine of the definitive host. Some Sarcocystis species are harmful to humans and domestic and wild animals (Dubey et al. 2016). In general, granivorous, insectivorous, and omnivorous birds are intermediate hosts for numerous Sarcocystis species, while birds of prey serve as definitive hosts for these parasites (Kutkienė et al. 2009, 2010, 2012a, b; Gjerde and Dahlgren Handling Editor: Una Ryan * Petras Prakas [email protected] 1
Nature Research Centre, Akademijos Str. 2, LT-08412 Vilnius, Lithuania
2010; Prakas et al. 2011, 2013, 2014, 2018a, b, 2020). However, it was shown that predatory birds might act as intermediate hosts for some Sarcocystis species (Lindsay and Blagburn 1999; Krone et al. 2000). Birds of the family Corvidae may serve as intermediate or definitive hosts for some Sarcocystis species. Sarcocysts were found in the muscles
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