First record and distribution of Adelina sp. (Coccidia: Adeleidae) in populations of the Anisoplia segetum Herbst (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in Turkey

Gut protozoa of wild rodents - a meta-analysis

Protozoa are well-known inhabitants of the mammalian gut and so of the gut microbiome. While there has been extensive study of a number of species of gut protozoa in laboratory animals, particularly rodents, the biology of the gut protozoa of wild rodents is much less well-known. Here we have systematically searched the published literature to describe the gut protozoa of wild rodents, in total finding records of 44 genera of protozoa infecting 228 rodent host species. We then undertook meta-analyses that estimated the overall prevalence of gut protozoa in wild rodents to be 24%, with significant variation in prevalence among some host species. We investigated how host traits may affect protozoa prevalence, finding that for some host lifestyles some protozoa differed in their prevalence. This synthesis of existing data on wild rodent gut protozoa provides a better understanding of the biology of these common gut inhabitants and suggests directions for their future study.

Intestinal parasites of the endangered European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) populations in Slovakia

The present pilot research was focused on the detection of intestinal parasites in the ground squirrel populations in various regions of Slovakia. Only a very little information is currently available on the parasitic species composition of the European ground squirrel in Slovakia and across Europe. In the Slovak Republic, there are 70 locations where the ground squirrel populations are present. A total of 600 faecal samples of the European ground squirrels, collected from 36 locations all over Slovakia, were examined by applying the coprological method. The presence of the protozoan coccidian parasite of the Eimeria genus was confirmed in all of the analysed locations. The presence of eggs of four helminths were confirmed: Capillaria spp. (66.6% of locations); the Trichostrongylidae family (42.8% of locations); Hymenolepis spp. (11.9% of locations); and Citellina spp. (7.14% of locations). Dead individuals that were found in the analysed localities were subjected to necropsy and the tissues scraped off their small intestines were stained in order to confirm the presence of parasites. The post-mortem examination of the intestines and the sedimentation of the intestinal contents in a saline solution did not result in the confirmation of the presence of the eggs, adults or the larval stages of parasites. Spermophilus citellus is one of the strictly protected animal species in Slovakia. In recent years, numerous projects aimed at supporting and protecting ground squirrels have been implemented. The present pilot study on intestinal parasites and the subsequent cooperation with environmental activists will contribute to the support and stabilisation of the presence of these animals in our country.

A Large-Scale Study into Protist-Animal Interactions Based on Public Genomic Data Using DNA Barcodes

With the birth of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology, genomic data in public databases have increased exponentially. Unfortunately, exogenous contamination or intracellular parasite sequences in assemblies could confuse genomic analysis. Meanwhile, they can provide a valuable resource for studies of host-microbe interactions. Here, we used a strategy based on DNA barcodes to scan protistan contamination in the GenBank WGS/TSA database. The results showed a total of 13,952 metazoan/animal assemblies in GenBank, where 17,036 contigs were found to be protistan contaminants in 1507 assemblies (10.8%), with even higher contamination rates in taxa of Cnidaria (150/281), Crustacea (237/480), and Mollusca (107/410). Taxonomic analysis of the protists derived from these contigs showed variations in abundance and evenness of protistan contamination across different metazoan taxa, reflecting host preferences of Apicomplexa, Ciliophora, Oomycota and Symbiodiniaceae for mammals and birds, Crustacea, insects, and Cnidaria, respectively. Finally, mitochondrial proteins COX1 and CYTB were predicted from these contigs, and the phylogenetic analysis corroborated the protistan origination and heterogeneous distribution of the contaminated contigs. Overall, in this study, we conducted a large-scale scan of protistan contaminant in genomic resources, and the protistan sequences detected will help uncover the protist diversity and relationships of these picoeukaryotes with Metazoa.

Ophryocystis sitonae sp. nov., (Neogregarinida: Ophryocystidae) parasitizing Sitona humeralis Stephens, 1831 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

Sitona humeralis Stephens 1831 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is an important pest of the Medicago and Vicia species in Turkey, and this study was conducted the determine the natural pathogens of this beetle. In the present study, a new neogregarine was observed in Malpighian tubules of the S. humeralis, collected from Ordu (Turkey) on the wild Medicago species. The yellowish oocysts were the most notable feature of the current neogregarine. The Giemsa-stained mature oocysts were fusiform shaped and measured 8.7 ± 0.7 (7.12-11.11) μm in length and 4.1 ± 0.3 (3.05-5.01) μm in width. The smooth oocyst wall was relatively thin (175-230 nm), and polar plugs were non-evident (weight = 380 nm, height = 500 nm). The 18S rDNA gene of the current neogregarine was sequenced and compared with fifteen sequences from GenBank. Morphological, ultrastructural, and molecular features indicate that the described neogregarine in S. humeralis differed from the all known Ophryocystis species and named here Ophryocystis sitonae sp. nov.