: Very little information is reported for parasites of cnidarians, therefore, the present work aimed to investigate parasitic infections in one of the most widespread jellyfish in the Mediterranean Sea, Rhizostoma pulmo. The goals were to determine prevalence and intensity of parasites in R. pulmo, identify the species involved through morphological and molecular analysis, test whether infection parameters differ in different body parts and in relation to jellyfish size. 58 individuals were collected, 100% of them infected with digenean metacercariae. Intensity varied between 18.7 ± 6.7 per individual in 0-2 cm diameter jellyfish up to 505 ± 50.6 in 14 cm ones. Morphological and molecular analyses suggest that the metacercariae belonged to the family Lepocreadiidae and could be possibly assigned to the genus Clavogalea. Prevalence values of 100% suggest that R. pulmo is an important intermediate host in the life cycle of lepocreadiids in the region. Our findings also support the hypothesis that R. pulmo is an important part in the diet of teleost fish, which are reported as definitive hosts of lepocreadiids, since trophic transmission is necessary for these parasites to complete their life cycles. Parasitological data may therefore be useful to investigate fish-jellyfish predation, integrating traditional methods such as gut contents analysis.

Motta G., Caffara M., Fioravanti M.L., Bottaro M., Avian M., Terlizzi A., et al. (2023). Parasitic infection in the scyphozoan Rhizostoma pulmo (Macri, 1778). SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 13, 1-11 [10.1038/s41598-023-31693-7].

Parasitic infection in the scyphozoan Rhizostoma pulmo (Macri, 1778)

Caffara M.;Fioravanti M. L.;Tedesco P.
2023

Abstract

: Very little information is reported for parasites of cnidarians, therefore, the present work aimed to investigate parasitic infections in one of the most widespread jellyfish in the Mediterranean Sea, Rhizostoma pulmo. The goals were to determine prevalence and intensity of parasites in R. pulmo, identify the species involved through morphological and molecular analysis, test whether infection parameters differ in different body parts and in relation to jellyfish size. 58 individuals were collected, 100% of them infected with digenean metacercariae. Intensity varied between 18.7 ± 6.7 per individual in 0-2 cm diameter jellyfish up to 505 ± 50.6 in 14 cm ones. Morphological and molecular analyses suggest that the metacercariae belonged to the family Lepocreadiidae and could be possibly assigned to the genus Clavogalea. Prevalence values of 100% suggest that R. pulmo is an important intermediate host in the life cycle of lepocreadiids in the region. Our findings also support the hypothesis that R. pulmo is an important part in the diet of teleost fish, which are reported as definitive hosts of lepocreadiids, since trophic transmission is necessary for these parasites to complete their life cycles. Parasitological data may therefore be useful to investigate fish-jellyfish predation, integrating traditional methods such as gut contents analysis.
2023
Motta G., Caffara M., Fioravanti M.L., Bottaro M., Avian M., Terlizzi A., et al. (2023). Parasitic infection in the scyphozoan Rhizostoma pulmo (Macri, 1778). SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 13, 1-11 [10.1038/s41598-023-31693-7].
Motta G.; Caffara M.; Fioravanti M.L.; Bottaro M.; Avian M.; Terlizzi A.; Tedesco P.
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
s41598-023-31693-7_rhizo.pdf

accesso aperto

Tipo: Versione (PDF) editoriale
Licenza: Licenza per Accesso Aperto. Creative Commons Attribuzione (CCBY)
Dimensione 2.53 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
2.53 MB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri
41598_2023_31693_MOESM1_ESM.pdf

accesso aperto

Tipo: File Supplementare
Licenza: Licenza per Accesso Aperto. Creative Commons Attribuzione (CCBY)
Dimensione 299.29 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
299.29 kB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11585/929433
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? 0
  • Scopus 2
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 2
social impact