title: Morphological and molecular characterization of Sarcocystis taeniata and Sarcocystis pilosa n. sp. from the sika deer (Cervus nippon) in Lithuania.
abstract: The diaphragm muscles of eight sika deer (Cervus nippon) bred in Lithuania were examined for Sarcocystis cysts. Two Sarcocystis species, Sarcocystis taeniata, which were previously reported in Canadian moose (Alces alces) and Argentinean red deer (Cervus elaphus), and Sarcocystis pilosa n. sp. were described using light microscopy (LM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), 18S ribosomal DNA (rDNA), and subunit I of cytochrome c oxidase (cox1) sequences analysis. By LM, cysts of S. taeniata were 424.8 × 57.9 (200-837 × 30-100) μm in size and had a thin (up to 1 μm) and smooth cyst wall, while short ribbon-like protrusions arising from broadened cone-shaped bases were seen under TEM. Cysts of S. pilosa (by LM) were ribbon-shaped, measured 848.5 × 63.8 (350-1700 × 30-125) μm and had thin 7-8-μm long hair-like protrusions. By TEM, cyst wall was type 7a-like; protrusions arose from 0.3 μm wide dome-shaped base with minute indentations of the parasitophorous vacuolar membrane near it, the surface of protrusions seemed to be smooth, and the ground substance layer was thin (0.18-0.22 μm). The 18S rDNA, in contrast to the cox1, lacked variability to discriminate S. pilosa from closely related Sarcocystis hjorti from the red deer and moose. S. taeniata, but not S. pilosa, showed a considerable intraspecific variation in both genes analyzed. The phylogenetic analyses based on 18S rDNA and cox1 sequences suggest that canids are definitive hosts of both S. taeniata and S. pilosa. This paper represents the first identification of Sarcocystis species in the sika deer by morphological and molecular methods.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, LT-08412, Vilnius, Lithuania. prakaspetras@gmail.com.|Institute of Biology Systems and Genetic Research, Veterinary Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Tilžės 18, LT-47181, Kaunas, Lithuania. prakaspetras@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Petras
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Prakas
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, LT-08412, Vilnius, Lithuania.
authors.forename: Dalius
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Butkauskas
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, LT-08412, Vilnius, Lithuania.
authors.forename: Eglė
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rudaitytė
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, LT-08412, Vilnius, Lithuania.
authors.forename: Liuda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kutkienė
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, LT-08412, Vilnius, Lithuania.|Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, Vileikos str. 8, LT-44248, Kaunas, Lithuania.
authors.forename: Aniolas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sruoga
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, Vileikos str. 8, LT-44248, Kaunas, Lithuania.
authors.forename: Irma
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pūraitė
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics*; D003670:Deer / Q000469:parasitology*; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV / Q000235:genetics*; D008097:Lithuania; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D010802:Phylogeny; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S / Q000235:genetics; D012522:Sarcocystis / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics*; D012523:Sarcocystosis / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*
chemical_list: D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV
keywords: 18S rDNA; Phylogenetic analysis; Sarcocystis pilosa; Sarcocystis taeniata; Sika deer; Transmission electron microscopy; cox1