Hostname: page-component-74656f9884-6grmk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-11-06T01:26:38.231Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Molecular genetic characterization of the Fennoscandian cervid strain, a new genotypic group (G10) of Echinococcus granulosus

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 October 2003

A. LAVIKAINEN
Affiliation:
Department of Bacteriology and Immunology, Haartman Institute, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 21, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
M. J. LEHTINEN
Affiliation:
Department of Bacteriology and Immunology, Haartman Institute, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 21, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
T. MERI
Affiliation:
Department of Bacteriology and Immunology, Haartman Institute, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Central Hospital, P.O. Box 21, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
V. HIRVELÄ-KOSKI
Affiliation:
National Veterinary and Food Research Institute (EELA), Oulu Regional Unit, P.O. Box 517, FIN-90101 Oulu, Finland
S. MERI
Affiliation:
Department of Bacteriology and Immunology, Haartman Institute, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Central Hospital, P.O. Box 21, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The northern biotype of Echinococcus granulosus occurs in North America and northern Eurasia in life-cycles involving cervids. Previously, cervid isolates of E. granulosus from North America have been characterized using molecular genetic techniques as the G8 genotype. In this study, 5 isolates of E. granulosus were collected from 4 reindeer and 1 moose in north-eastern Finland. DNA sequences within regions of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) and NADH dehydrogenase I (NDI) genes and the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS-1) fragment of the ribosomal DNA were analysed. The mitochondrial nucleotide sequences were identical in all isolates, but high sequence variation was found in the ITS-1 region. Mitochondrial and nuclear sequences of the Finnish cervid E. granulosus and the camel strain (G6) of E. granulosus resembled closely each other. According to phylogenetic analyses, the Finnish isolates have close relationships also with the pig (G7) and cattle (G5) strains. Although some similarities were found with the previously published North American cervid strain (G8), particularly in the NDI sequence and some of the ITS-1 clones, the Finnish E. granulosus form represents a distinct, previously undescribed genotype of E. granulosus. The novel genotype is hereby named as the Fennoscandian cervid strain (G10).

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2003 Cambridge University Press
Figure 0

Table 1. Hosts and geographical origins of the analysed Finnish Echinococcus granulosus isolates and the Echinococcus species and strains used as reference material

Figure 1

Table 2. Pairwise nucleotide sequence identities of partial CO1 (366 bp) and ND1 (443 bp) genes between the Finnish Echinococcus granulosus form and the other strains and species of Echinococcus

Figure 2

Table 3. Pairwise nucleotide sequence identities of the ITS-1 region between the clones of the Finnish isolates (EgFin) and the clones from the other strains and species of Echinococcus

Figure 3

Fig. 1. Uprooted quartet puzzling trees of Echinococcus species and strains based on an alignment of partial mitochondrial COI and NDI genes (COI, log likelihood=−1054·0; NDI, log likelihood=−1639·0). The figures represent the relative support of the nodes using 1000 puzzling steps. Nodes with less than 50% support are collapsed. The distance scale is proportional to the number of mutations per site. ‘Eg’, E. granulosus, ‘EgFin’, the Finnish E. granulosus isolates, ‘Em’, E. multilocularis, ‘Eo’, E. oligarthrus, ‘Ev’, E. vogeli. The identity codes for the strains of E. granulosus and E. multilocularis are the same as in Table 1.

Figure 4

Fig. 2. Uprooted quartet puzzling tree of Echinococcus species and strains based on an alignment of nuclear ITS-1 rDNA sequences (log likelihood=−2225·6). The figures represent the relative support of the nodes using 1000 puzzling steps. Nodes with less than 50% support are collapsed. The distance scale is proportional to the number of mutations per site. ‘Eg’, E. granulosus, ‘EgFin’, the Finnish E. granulosus isolates, ‘Em’, E. multilocularis, ‘Eo’, E. oligarthrus, ‘Ev’, E. vogeli. The identity codes for the strains and the ITS-1 clones are shown in Table 1.