Partial COX1 gene amplification and assembly from Nematotaenia dispar (Cestoda) infecting Sclerophrys regularis in Egypt
As part of a parasitological survey, an adult tapeworm specimen morphologically identified as Nematotaenia dispar (Goeze, 1782) was isolated from the intestine of an Egyptian spotted toad, Sclerophrys regularis (Reuss, 1833), collected from agricultural habitats and irrigation canals in Abu Rawash, Giza Governorate, Egypt. The mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene was amplified using universal primers JB3 and JB4.5. This study presents the first partial COI sequence for N. dispar from this host in Egypt, providing molecular data for future phylogenetic and taxonomic studies of nematotaeniid cestodes.