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Huffmanela cf. huffmani (Nematoda: Trichosomoididae) infecting swim bladder, peritoneum, and gonad of variable platyfish, Xiphophorus variatus (Cyprinodontiformes: Poeciliidae) and eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki (Poeciliidae) in Florida; taxonomy, phylogenetic analysis, and pathological changes

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Abstract

Variable platyfish, Xiphophorus variatus (Meek, 1904) (Cyprinodontiformes: Poeciliidae) and eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki Girard, 1859 (Poeciliidae) from earthen ponds in west central Florida were examined for parasitic infections. At necropsy, we observed myriad nematodes (adults and eggs), which we identified as Huffmanela cf. huffmani, infecting the swim bladder, gonad, and visceral peritoneum. Nucleotide sequences (small subunit ribosomal DNA, 18S) of H. cf. huffmani from variable platyfish and eastern mosquitofish were identical; likewise for newly obtained 18S sequences of Huffmanela huffmani Moravec, 1987 from the swim bladder of red breast sunfish, Lepomis auritus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Centrarchiformes: Centrarchidae) and warmouth, Lepomis gulosus (Cuvier, 1829) from the San Marcos River (type locality for Huffmanela huffmani Moravec, 1987), Texas. The sequences of H. huffmani and H. cf. huffmani differed by 7 (1%) nucleotides. Pathological changes comprised proliferation of the tunica externa of the swim bladder in low-intensity infections in addition to inflammation, proliferation, and tissue necrosis of swim bladder, peritoneum, and gonad in high-intensity infections. The lesion was severe, affecting the cellular constituents of the swim bladder wall and reducing the size of the swim bladder lumen; potentially reducing swim bladder physiological efficiency. The present study is the first record of a freshwater species of Huffmanela Moravec, 1987 from beyond the San Marcos River, first record of a species of Huffmanela from a livebearer, first nucleotide sequences and phylogenetic analysis for Huffmanela, and first evidence that an infection by a species of Huffmanela causes pathological changes that could impact organ function.

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Acknowledgements

This work was funded by the Southeastern Cooperative Fish Parasite and Disease Project as well as by National Sea Grant (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), United States Fish and Wildlife Service, United States Department of Agriculture (National Institute of Food and Agriculture), Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration (Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Inland and Marine Resources Divisions), Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, and Auburn University College of Agriculture. Jackson Roberts (Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA), Rapha Orélis-Ribeiro (Butantan Institute, Laboratory of Parasitology, São Paulo, Brazil), and Carlos Ruiz (El Paso, TX) helped collect nematode specimens and conducted initial assessments of the infected fish. We thank the Laboratory of Electron Microscopy, Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre CAS, institution supported by the MEYS CR (LM2015062 Czech-BioImaging) and ERDF (No. CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_013/0001775), for their support with obtaining the scientific data presented in this paper, and to Blanka Škoríková and Roman Kuchta (both Institute of Parasitology) for help with the illustrations and LM images of nematode eggs, respectively. This study was partly supported by the Institute of Parasitology, BC AS CR (RVO: 60077344).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Aquatic Parasitology Laboratory and Southeastern Cooperative Fish Parasite and Disease Laboratory, Auburn University, 559 Devall Drive, Auburn, AL, 36832, USA

    Stephen A. Bullard, Steven P. Ksepka, Micah B. Warren & Haley R. Dutton

  2. Department of Zoology, School for Environmental Sciences and Development, North-West University, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom, 2520, South Africa

    Stephen A. Bullard

  3. Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Branišovská 31, 370 05, České Budějovice, Czech Republic

    František Moravec

  4. Department of Biology, 212 Freeman Aquatic Biology Building, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, 78666, USA

    David G. Huffman

  5. Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory, Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences Program, School of Forest Fisheries and Geomatics Sciences, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, 1408 24th Street, Ruskin, FL, 33570, USA

    Roy P. E. Yanong

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  1. Stephen A. Bullard
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Correspondence to Stephen A. Bullard.

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Bullard, S.A., Moravec, F., Ksepka, S.P. et al. Huffmanela cf. huffmani (Nematoda: Trichosomoididae) infecting swim bladder, peritoneum, and gonad of variable platyfish, Xiphophorus variatus (Cyprinodontiformes: Poeciliidae) and eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki (Poeciliidae) in Florida; taxonomy, phylogenetic analysis, and pathological changes. Parasitol Res 121, 2307–2323 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-022-07570-z

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