Ascaridoid parasites infecting in the frequently consumed marine fishes in the coastal area of China: A preliminary investigation

- Five species of ascaridoid parasites at different developmental stages were detected.
- Raphidascaridids are the dominant nematode parasites in the examined marine fishes.
- Third-stage larvae of Anisakis are not common in the marine fishes examined herein.
- Morphological and molecular characterizations of anisakid and raphidascaridid species were provided.

Marine fishes represent the important components of the diet in the coastal areas of China and they are also natural hosts of various parasites. However, to date, little is known about the occurrence of ascaridoid parasites in the frequently consumed marine fishes in China. In order to determine the presence of ascaridoid parasites in the frequently consumed marine fishes in the coastal town Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China, 211 fish representing 45 species caught from the South China Sea (off Daya Gulf) were examined. Five species of ascaridoid nematodes at different developmental stages were detected in the marine fishes examined herein, including third-stage larva of Anisakis typica (Diesing, 1860), third and fourth-stage larvae of Hysterothylacium sp. IV-A of Shamsi, Gasser & Beveridge, 2013, adult and third-stage larvae of Hysterothylacium zhoushanense Li, Liu & Zhang, 2014, adults and third-stage larvae of Raphidascaris lophii (Wu, 1949) and adults of Raphidascaris longispicula Li, Liu & Zhang, 2012. The overall prevalence of infection is 18.0%. Of them, Hysterothylacium sp. IV-A with the highest prevalence (17.5%) and intensity (mean = 14.6) of infection was the predominant species. The prevalence and intensity of A. typica were very low (1/211 of marine fish infected with an intensity of one parasite per fish). The morphological and molecular characterization of all nematode species was provided. A cladistic analysis based on ITS sequence was constructed in order to determine the phylogenetic relationships of these ascaridoid parasites obtained herein. The present study provided important information on the occurrence and diagnosis of ascaridoid nematodes in the commercially important marine fishes from the South China Sea. The low level of infection and the species composition of ascaridoid nematodes seem to indicate the presence of low risk of human anisakidosis when local population consumed these marine fishes examined herein.

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