Tegumental topography and molecular characterisation of two trematodes (Platyhelminthes: Digenea) from Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) in Kenya

The discoveries of new taxonomic features of digenean species through the application of contemporary techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and molecular analysis are still growing. Two species of trematodes Glossidium pedatum and Tylodelphys mashonensis from the intestine and vitreous humour of Clarias gariepinus were recovered from Lake Ol’Bolossat, Kenya. The two endo-helminths were prepared for morphological examination using SEM and molecular characterisation. Additional morphological features were observed for G. pedatum such as domed papillae in the anterior extremity and a protruding cirrus which was unarmed, laterally folded and with a blunt tip as the first such observation for the genus and led to additional characteristics of the diagnosis of the genus. Tylodelphys mashonensis was characterised by a round oral sucker and tribocytic organ rounded with rows of papillae symmetrically arranged. The molecular analyses using ribosomal marker 28S large subunit (LSU) rDNA and mitochondrial (mtDNA) cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) for both G. pedatum and T. mashonensis confirmed the identity of the species and their phylogenetic relationship within the subclass Digenea. This study provides the first mitochondrial (mt)DNA sequence for G. pedatum and also extends the geographical record of two parasites to Kenya