Tyrannobdella rex n. gen. n. sp. and the evolutionary origins of mucosal leech infestations.
BACKGROUND
Leeches have gained a fearsome reputation by feeding externally on blood, often from human hosts. Orificial hirudiniasis is a condition in which a leech enters a body orifice, most often the nasopharyngeal region, but there are many cases of leeches infesting the eyes, urethra, vagina, or rectum. Several leech species particularly in Africa and Asia are well-known for their propensity to afflict humans. Because there has not previously been any data suggesting a close relationship for such geographically disparate species, this unnerving tendency to be invasive has been regarded only as a loathsome oddity and not a unifying character for a group of related organisms.


RESULTS
A new genus and species of leech from Perú was found feeding from the nasopharynx of humans. Unlike any other leech previously described, this new taxon has but a single jaw with very large teeth. Phylogenetic analyses of nuclear and mitochondrial genes using parsimony and Bayesian inference demonstrate that the new species belongs among a larger, global clade of leeches, all of which feed from the mucosal surfaces of mammals.


CONCLUSIONS
This new species, found feeding from the upper respiratory tract of humans in Perú, clarifies an expansion of the family Praobdellidae to include the new species Tyrannobdella rex n. gen. n. sp., along with others in the genera Dinobdella, Myxobdella, Praobdella and Pintobdella. Moreover, the results clarify a single evolutionary origin of a group of leeches that specializes on mucous membranes, thus, posing a distinct threat to human health.
Phillips
Anna J
AJ
Department of Biology, The Graduate Center, The City University of New York, New York, New York, United States of America.
Arauco-Brown
Renzo
R
Oceguera-Figueroa
Alejandro
A
Gomez
Gloria P
GP
Beltrán
María
M
Lai
Yi-Te
YT
Siddall
Mark E
ME
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002965:Classification; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D006801:Humans; D007865:Leeches / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D009092:Mucous Membrane / Q000469:parasitology*; D009666:Nose / Q000469:parasitology*; D010272:Parasitic Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D010568:Peru; D010802:Phylogeny; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial