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Dive into the sea: first molecular phylogenetic evidence of host expansion from terrestrial/freshwater to marine organisms in Mermithidae (Nematoda: Mermithida)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 May 2022
Abstract
We report the first mermithid nematode found to be parasitic in a marine tanaidacean crustacean. Ten host tanaidaceans were collected from a depth of 52 m in Otsuchi Bay, Iwate, Japan, north-western Pacific, and identified as a species in the tanaidid genus Zeuxo Templeton, 1840. Nematodes occurred in the host's body cavity; in one case, at least two individuals inhabited a single host. We provide a brief description and illustrations of the morphology of the nematode. In a phylogenetic reconstruction based on the 18S ribosomal RNA gene, the nematode nested in a clade otherwise containing mermithids from terrestrial or freshwater hosts, showing an expansion in host utilization in Mermithidae Braun, 1883 from terrestrial/freshwater hosts to a marine organism.
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- Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press
Footnotes
Current address: Center for Molecular Biodiversity Research, National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba 305-0005, Japan.
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