Myxobolus sp. (Myxozoa; Myxosporea) causing asymptomatic parasitic gill disease in Astyanax aff. bimaculatus (Characiformes; Characidae) in the Tocantins river basin, amazon region, Brazil

• Published in: Revista brasileira de parasitologia veterinaria Vol. 28; no. 4; pp. 739 - 743
• Main Authors: Silva, Marcelo Francisco da, Sousa-Henrique, Dalila de Deus, Messias-Luz, Nirvana, Borralho, Larissa Dos Santos, Oliveira, Jorge Diniz de, Sindeaux-Neto, José Ledamir, Matos, Edilson Rodrigues
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Portuguese
• Published: Brazil Colégio Brasileiro de Parasitologia Veterinária 01.10.2019; Colégio Brasileiro de Parasitologia Veterinaria
• Subjects: Animals; Bivalvulida; Brazil; Characidae - classification; Characidae - parasitology; Characiformes; Fish Diseases - parasitology; Gills - parasitology; Myxobolus - classification; Myxobolus - isolation & purification; Myxozoa; PARASITOLOGY; parasitos; Rivers; VETERINARY SCIENCES; Brazil; Myxozoa; Bivalvulida; Characiformes; Parasites; parasitos
• ISSN: 0103-846X; 1984-2961; 1984-2961
• DOI: 10.1590/s1984-29612019041

The middle course of the Tocantins river is located in the eastern portion of the "Legal Amazon" region of Brazil and the Dantas river is one of its tributaries. Among the components of the aquatic biota, eukaryote microparasites establish direct relationships with several species of fish and have zoonotic potential that is still little known. Myxozoans stand out among these parasites: they cause myxosporidiosis, a disease that gives rise to high mortality rates worldwide. The genus Myxobolus accounts for the largest number of species that have been described. Thirty specimens of Astyanax aff. bimaculatus that had been caught in the Dantas river were examined. The prevalence of cysts with spores morphologically compatible with myxozoans of the genus Myxobolus in the arcuate and gill filaments of these specimens was 20%.