Blood parasites in European legless lizards (Pseudopus apodus) from north of Iran
Subject Areas : Parasitology
Hossein Javanbakht
1
*
,
Hamidhossein Khezri
2
1 - Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
2 - Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran
Keywords: Haemogregarine, Hepatozoon, Karyolysus, Reptile, Blood parasite,
Abstract :
Parasites are a very diverse group of organisms that play a vital role in ecosystems. The Apicomplexa phylum is a large group of obligate intracellular single-celled parasites found in invertebrates and vertebrates. They can infect a wide range of animals from fish to mammals. The present study investigated the Apicomplexan blood parasite in legless lizards, Pseudopus apodus, from the north of Iran. Blood smears of caudal venous blood from 14 legless lizards were collected, prepared by fixation with methanol, and stained with Giemsa for 15 minutes. Morphological examination of the prepared smears by microscope confirmed the presence of species of hemogregarine blood parasites belonging to Hepatozoon ophisauri. This parasite is commonly placed in the concave part of the red blood cell in gametocyte form. Hemoparasites infected 14.2% of lizards. The mean intensity of hemoparasites was 0.084% in each infected individual. In this study, the infection and intensity of hemogregarine parasites were reported from the legless lizard. The intensity of blood parasites compared with Palearctic lacertid lizards was very low. A molecular study with more specimens alongside vectors is needed to identify all hemogregarine parasites in these lizards.
[1] Smith TG. The genus Hepatozoon (Apicomplexa: Adeleina). Journal of Parasitology. 1996; 82: 565– 585. [2] Telford SR. Hemoparasites of the reptilia: Color atlas and text. New York: CRC Press; 2009.
[3] Barta JR, Ogedengbe JD, Martin DS, Smith TG. Phylogenetic position of the adeleorinid coccidia (Myzozoa, Apicomplexa, Coccidia, Eucoccidiorida, Adeleorina) was inferred using 18S rDNA sequences. Journal of Eukaryote Microbiology. 2012; 59:171–180.
[4] Javanbakht H, Kvicerova J, Dvorakova N, Mikulıcek P, Sharifi M, Kautman M, Marsıkova M, Siroky P. Phylogeny, diversity, distribution, and host specificity of Haemoproteus spp. (Apicomplexa: Haemosporida: Haemoproteidae) of palaearctic tortoises. Journal of Eukaryote Microbiology. 2015; 62: 670-678.
[5] Sajjadi S, Javanbakht H. Study of blood parasites of the three snake species in Iran: Natrix natrix, Natrix tessellata and Zamenis longissimus (Colubridae). Journal of Genetic Resources. 2017; 3(1): 1-6.
[6] Nasrabadi R, Rastegar-Pouyani N, Rastegar Pouyani E, Kami HG, Gharzi A, Hosseinian Yousefkhani S. The effects of climate change on the distribution of European glass lizard Pseudopus apodus (PALLAS, 1775) in Eurasia. Ecolcalogi Research. 2018; 33(1): 199–204.
[7] Safaei-Mahroo B, Ghaffari H, Fahimi H, Broomand S, Yazdanian M, Najafi Majd E, et al. The herpetofauna of Iran: checklist of taxonomy, distribution and conservation status. Asian Herpetological Research. 2015; 6: 257 – 290. [8] Smith TG, Desser SS. Phylogenetic analysis of the genus Hepatozoon Millet 1908 (apicomplexa: adeleorina). Systematic Parasitology. 1997; 36: 213–221.
[9] Jakes KA, O’Donoghue PJ, Cameron SL. Phylogenetic relationships of Hepatozoon (Haemogregarina) boigae, Hepatozoon sp., Haemogregarina clelandi and Haemoproteus chelodina from Australian reptiles to other Apicomplexa based on cladistic analyses of ultrastructural and life-cycle characters. Parasitology. 2003; 126: 555–559.
[(10] Paperna I, Lainson R. Hepatozoon cf. terzii (Sambon, Seligman, 1907) infection in the snakes Boa constrictor constrictor from North Brazil: Transmission to the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus and the lizards Tropidurus torquatus. Parasite. 2004; 11: 175–181.
[11] Mihalca AD, Racka K, Gherman C, Ionescu DT. Prevalence and intensity of blood apicomplexan infections in reptiles from Romania. Parasitology Research. Heidelberg 2008; 102:1081-1083.
[12] Zechmeisterova K, Javanbakht H, Kvicerova J, Siroky P. Against growing synonymy: Identification pitfalls of Hepatozoon and Schellackia demonstrated on North Iranian reptiles. European Journal of Protistology. 2021; 7: 125780.
[13] Tome B, Pereira A, James Harris D, Carretero MA, Perera A. A paradise for parasites? Seven new haemogregarine species infecting lizards from the Canary Islands. Parasitology. 2019; 146(6): 728-739.
[14] Cicek K, Varol Tok C, Hayretdağ S, Ayaz D. Data on the Food Composition of European Glass Lizard, Pseudopus apodus (Pallas, 1775) (Squamata: Anguidae) from Çanakkale (Western Anatolia, Turkey). Acta Zoologica Bulgarica. 2014; 66 (3): 433 436.
[15] Gwiazdowicz DJ, FiliP KP. Ophionyssus saurarum (acari, Mesostigmata) infecting Lacerta agilis (Reptilia, Lacertidae). Wiadomości Parazytologiczne. 2009; 55 (1), 61-62.
[16] Majlathova V, Majláth I, Haklová B, Hromada M, Ekner A, Antczak M, TryJanowski P. Blood parasites in two co-existing species of lizards (Zootoca vivipara and Lacerta agilis). Parasitology Research, Heidelberg 2010; 107: 1121-1127.
[17] Aliyev MA, Giabova GD, Musaev MA. The Coccidia (Sporozoa, Apicomplexa) of reptiles from Azerbaijan. International conference and III congress of parasitologocal society at RAS. St. Petersburg; 2003.
[18] Noghnchi E, Javanbakht H. A preliminary study on diversity, prevalence and intensity of blood parasites in green bellied lizards (Darevskia chlorogaster) from north of Iran. International research journal of biological sciences. 2019; 8(3): 1-5.
[19] Amo L, Lopez P, Martin J. Prevalence and intensity of haemogregarinid blood parasites in a population of the Iberian rock lizard, Lacerta monticola. Parasitology Research. 2004; 94: 290 293.
[20] Molnar O, Bajer K, Meszaros B, Torok J, Herczeg G. Negative correlation between nuptial throat colour and blood parasite load in male European green lizards supports the Hamilton-Zuk hypothesis. Naturwissenschaften. 2013; 100(6): 551–558.
[21] Salvador A, Veiga JP, Martın J, Lopez P, Abelenda M, Puerta M. The cost of producing a sexual signal: testosterone increases the susceptibility of male lizards to ectoparasitic infestation. Behavioral Ecology. 1996; 7: 145–150.
[(22] Veiga JP, Salvador A, Merino S. Puerta M. Reproductive effort affects immune response and parasite infection in a lizard: a phenotypic manipulation using testosterone. Oikos. 1998; 82: 313– 318.
[23] Hassl AR. Blood parasitism by hemogregarines in central European lizards. Herpetozoa. 2012; 25: (1/2).
[24] Haklova-Kocikova B, Hižňanová A, Majláth I, Račka K, Harris DJ, Földvári G, Tryjanowski P, Kokošová N, Malčeková B, Majláthová V. Morphological and molecular characterization of Karyolysus-a neglected but common parasite infecting some European lizards. Parasites & Vectors. 2014; 7: 555.