Livestock trade history, geography, and parasite strains: the mitochondrial genetic structure of Echinococcus granulosus in Argentina

HAAG K. L.; AYALA F. J.; KAMENETZKY L.; GUTIERREZ A. M.; ROSENZVIT M. C.

JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY

American Society of parasitologists

Lugar: Estados Unidos; Año: 2004 vol. 90 p. 234 - 239

0022-3395

A sample of 114 isolates of Echinococcus granulosus (Cestoda: Taeniidae) collected from different host species andsites in Argentina has been sequenced for 391 bp from the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene to analyze geneticvariability and population structure. Nine different haplotypes were identified, 5 of which correspond to already characterizedstrains. Analysis of molecular variance and nested clade analysis of the distribution of haplotypes among localities within 3 maingeographic regions indicate that geographic differentiation accounts for the overall pattern of genetic variability in E. granulosuspopulations. Significant geographic differentiation is also present when the sheep strain alone is considered. Our results suggestthat geographic patterns are not due to actual restricted gene flow between regions but are rather a consequence of past history,probably related to the time and origin of livestock introduction in Argentina.