Journal of Parasitology最新文献

{"title":"RECOMBINASE-AIDED AMPLIFICATION COMBINED WITH LATERAL FLOW DIPSTICK FOR THE RAPID AND SENSITIVE DETECTION OF TRICHOMONAS GALLINAE.","authors":"Yuhan Zhou, Xinglong Song, Yaqian Chen, Zhenyu Zhong, Qingyun Guo, Shengfan Jing, Yilei Zhang, Qingxun Zhang, Congshan Yang","doi":"10.1645/25-34","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1645/25-34","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>Trichomonas gallinae is a protozoan parasite of the upper digestive tract of poultry and wild birds and poses a serious threat to the wild bird population and the pigeon industry globally. Therefore, rapid diagnosis and timely treatments are necessary to control T. gallinae. Although some conventional diagnostic methods have been described previously, these methods are hampered by omissions or high costs. In this study, the combination of biotin-labeled and FAM-labeled primers and probes for recombinase-aided amplification (RAA) with a lateral flow dipstick (LFD) was investigated to visualize the RAA results. The RAA-LFD assay was established for the on-site, rapid, and sensitive detection of T. gallinae. The RAA-LFD assay with Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum, and Tetratrichomonas gallinarum did not produce a cross-reaction, which indicated that this RAA-LFD assay is specific for detecting T. gallinae. In addition, the RAA-LFD assay demonstrated high sensitivity with the lowest detection limit of 2.78 × 101 copies/μl of the Fe-HYD standard plasmid for T. gallinae. The complete detection process of the RAA-LFD assay was found to require 45 min. These results suggest that the RAA-LFD assay established in the present study may be promising for the rapid, specific, and sensitive detection of T. gallinae during surveillance efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"669-673"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145337158","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"MORPHOLOGICAL AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF HEPATOZOON SPECIES INFECTING FROGS AND SNAKES ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN UNITED STATES.","authors":"Ryan P Shannon, Chris T McAllister, Matthew G Bolek","doi":"10.1645/24-59","DOIUrl":"10.1645/24-59","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The genus Hepatozoon Miller, 1908 (Apicomplexa: Adeleorina) includes vector-borne, intracellular blood parasites that infect a wide range of vertebrate hosts, including frogs and snakes. Species identification of bloodstream forms is difficult because there are usually not many morphological characters to distinguish species and gamonts of genetically different isolates. Traditionally, Hepatozoon spp. have been distinguished by characters such as pathology to host erythrocytes and/or developmental stages in the invertebrate vector. However, recent molecular studies are finding that these distinctions do not correlate with gene sequence data. Specifically, this is the case for 2 closely related Hepatozoon species that infect North American anurans, Hepatozoon catesbianae and Hepatozoon clamatae. Gamonts infecting erythrocytes of these 2 species are morphologically indistinguishable, and traditionally they have been differentiated based on whether they fragment the host erythrocyte nucleus; however, recent genetic studies indicate that this character does not correlate with specific genotypes. In this study, we sampled frogs and snakes from the east central United States for Hepatozoon spp. and compared their effects on the host erythrocytes with genotype. Hepatozoon spp. infections were morphologically characterized with microscopy and molecularly characterized with Sanger sequencing at 3 loci (COIII, ITS-1, and 18S rDNA). We found that individuals of 3 ranid species (Rana catesbeiana, Rana clamitans, and Rana sphenocephala) were infected with Hepatozoon species. Of those, only individuals of R. clamitans were infected with Hepatozoon spp. that fragmented the host erythrocyte nuclei. As previously reported, mixed infections, determined with both microscope observation of fragmentation characters and Sanger sequencing, were common and obfuscated species identification and the usefulness of the fragmentation character in differentiating H. catesbianae and H. clamatae infecting North American anurans. We recommend that future studies aim to establish better definite links between cellular fragmentation characteristics and DNA sequences to differentiate these 2 species. We also report and characterize Hepatozoon cf. sipedon from 3 snake species. Infected erythrocytes in all 3 snake species displayed variation in the extent of cytoplasm clearing. Sequences from these 3 snakes were identical at ITS-1 and 18S rDNA (COIII was sequenced from only 1 isolate). In our 18S rDNA phylogeny, Hepatozoon spp. infecting frogs were in a single clade, whereas Hepatozoon spp. infecting snakes were found in multiple clades with Hepatozoon spp. that infect other hosts, including lizards, small mammals, and frogs. This study adds to a growing number of studies that indicate snakes are capturing Hepatozoon spp. from their prey, and we discuss the implications of these host captures for the life cycle evolution of Hepatozoon spp. infecting snakes.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"674-689"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145337188","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A SURVEY OF ENDOHELMINTH DIVERSITY OF BIRDS COLLECTED IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA.","authors":"Jasmine A Groves, Tyler J Achatz, John M Kinsella, Dana M Calhoun, Jeffery T Wilcox, Stephen E Greiman, Pieter T J Johnson","doi":"10.1645/24-123","DOIUrl":"10.1645/24-123","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The helminth fauna of birds has been the focus of many parasitological studies, which illustrate the especially diverse nature of avian helminth communities. In this study, we investigated the species richness, identity, and abundance of helminth infections in 17 species of birds representing 6 orders from the San Francisco Bay Area of California. A total of 70 birds were provided by wildlife rehabilitation centers and hunting groups from 13 California counties. Helminths were identified morphologically to the lowest taxonomic level, and, whenever possible, trematode identifications were confirmed using large ribosomal subunit (28S) rDNA sequences. Eighty-seven percent of birds were infected with helminths, including 86% infected with nematodes, 36% with trematodes, and 16% with either cestodes or acanthocephalans. We identified 39 helminth taxa, including 15 nematodes, 15 trematodes, 5 cestodes, and 4 acanthocephalans, which resulted in 33 new geographic records and 22 new host records. Among the orders of birds dissected, the Anseriformes Wagler, 1831, supported the highest total richness of helminths (18 taxa), although the highest helminth richness values in individual host species were observed in Nycticorax nycticorax (black-crowned night heron) L., 1758, and Ardea herodias (great blue heron) L., 1758, both with 7 taxa. Nycticorax nycticorax was also infected with Ribeiroia ondatrae (Price, 1931), which represents a new definitive host record in the United States. Our results demonstrate the need to generate baseline helminth survey data, which can be used to help understand the knowledge gaps for parasite life cycles, as well as patterns of parasite distribution.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"658-668"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-10-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145292573","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"THE FIRST MITOCHONDRIAL GENOME FROM A HEMIUROID (DIDYMODICLINUS SP. FROM PUERTO RICO) HIGHLIGHTS PHYLOGENETIC VOLATILITY.","authors":"Yanella Colón-Marty, Danimar López-Hernández, Sean A Locke","doi":"10.1645/25-31","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1645/25-31","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The family Didymozoidae is a speciose group of fish parasites with unusual morphologic and life-history characters. In the Caribbean, juvenile didymozoids are common in demersal fishes such as snappers (Lutjanidae), but few deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequences are available from these developmental stages in this region. In the present study, 1 complete and 1 partial juvenile didymozoid from a snapper (Lutjanus sp.) from Puerto Rico were characterized morphologically, and the complete ribosomal DNA operon and mitochondrial genome were sequenced. The specimens resembled the allomonilicecum morphotype, and phylogenetic analysis indicated membership in the Didymodiclininae, which comprises the genera Didymodiclinus and Paragonapodasmius. The presence of a ventral sucker excludes Paragonapodasmius, which has also not been recorded in the Atlantic region. Identification of the specimen as a member of Didymodiclinus, which is known from the broader region of our study, was generally supported in phylogenetic analysis. Mitogenome phylogenies recovered Didymodiclinus with Azygiidae, consistent with the classification of these taxa within Hemiurata. However, the position of the Hemiurata within the Digenea fluctuated radically in mitogenome trees obtained with different analytic approaches, particularly depending on whether alignments were based on amino acid translations or nucleotides. The present data have value for the study of the distribution, life history, and diversity of these parasites in the Caribbean, particularly given the negative effects of didymozoids on highly valued fishes such as tunas and groupers.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"649-657"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145251688","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"THE PHENOLOGY OF TICKS AND TICK-BORNE PATHOGENS IN A UNIVERSITY GREEN ZONE IN GEORGIA, USA.","authors":"Marina E Eremeeva, Shobhan Das, Chiamaka Ogwara","doi":"10.1645/25-23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1645/25-23","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We determined the seasonal distribution and abundance of ticks on a nature preserve and adjacent walkways of a university campus and evaluated their Rickettsiales carriage. Ticks were collected weekly by flagging or dragging 17 sites from June 2022 through May 2024, and environmental parameters were recorded. Ticks were identified according to species, sex, and life stage using standard keys. DNA was extracted, and a 12S tick mitochondrial DNA fragment was amplified and sequenced to verify tick identification. EvaGreen polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to test ticks for spotted fever group Rickettsia (SFGR) and Anaplasmataceae followed by amplification and sequencing of ompA and groEL fragments to identify the respective organisms detected. Diversity of Rickettsia and Ehrlichia was examined by analyzing sites with variable numbers of tandem repeats. Seven hundred sixty-eight ticks were collected, including 257 Amblyomma americanum Linnaeus (19.5% female, 21.8% male, and 58.8% nymphs), 461 Amblyomma sp. larvae, 45 Ixodes scapularis Say, and 5 Ixodes keiransi Beati, Nava, Venzal, and Guglielmone. Amblyomma americanum was collected from March through October, and I. scapularis was found from November through March. SFGR DNA was detected in 36.5% of ticks (66 A. americanum and 7 I. scapularis) and 69.9% of larval pools. Only Rickettsia amblyommatis was identified in Amblyomma ticks; I. scapularis contained Rickettsia buchneri. Eight Amblyomma ticks that tested PCR positive for Anaplasmataceae contained Ehrlichia chaffeensis (4 ticks), Ehrlichia ewingii (2), and Panola Mountain Ehrlichia sp. (2). Several variable-length PCR target (VLPT) variants of E. chaffeensis and plasmid gene tandem repeat variants of R. amblyommatis were detected in sympatric ticks collected from the study site. In conclusion, tick-borne rickettsiae found within small-scale green urban areas may pose risks of tick-borne infections for individuals using these places.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"637-648"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145225080","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"CHECKLIST OF INSECT ECTOPARASITES OF MEXICAN BATS.","authors":"Gerardo Cuellar-Rodríguez, Manuel de Luna, A Nayelli Rivera-Villanueva, Alan Cuxim-Koyoc, Antonio Guzmán-Velasco, Karen Lucero Flores-Román","doi":"10.1645/24-38","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1645/24-38","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A checklist of insects (Arthropoda: Hexapoda: Insecta) that parasitize Mexican bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) is presented: a total of 100 species grouped in 6 families and 3 orders are registered; these are recorded to infect a total of 69 species of bats in the country. The parasites are bat-flies of the families Nycteribiidae (10 species) and Streblidae (74 species) (Diptera: Hippoboscoidea), bat-bugs of the families Cimicidae (4 species) and Polyctenidae (1 species) (Hemiptera: Cimicoidea), bat-fleas of the family Ischnopsyllidae (10 species), and a chiggerflea of the family Tungidae (1 species) (Siphonaptera: Ceratophylloidea and Pulicoidea).</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"613-636"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145124030","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"MEROGONY AND PHYLOGENY OF HEPATOZOON RAWASHI PARASITIZING HASSELQUIST'S FAN-FOOTED GECKO, PTYODACTYLUS HASSELQUISITI (SAURIA: PHYLODACTYLIDAE) IN EGYPT.","authors":"A S Abdel-Baki, Lamjed Mansour, Saleh Al-Quraishy, Donald W Duszynski","doi":"10.1645/25-8","DOIUrl":"10.1645/25-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In 1995, it was reported that Mohammed and Ramadan (1996, in press) were soon to describe a new species of lizard haemogregarine, Haemogregarina rawashi, in Ptyodactylus hasselquisti from Egypt, but the paper was never published. This name was suppressed because Mohammed and Ramadan violated the \"Criteria for Publication\" and \"What Constitutes Published Work\" sections of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. A redescription of Ha. rawashi, was restricted only to blood forms, which allowed speculation that the data and visual documentation (photomicrographs, line drawings) of the tissue stages were forever lost. However, here we report collecting P. hasselquisti from South Sinai, Egypt and finding 5/20 (25%) infected with haemogregarine-like blood and tissue (liver) stages. The blood stages were comparable with those in an earlier report from Egypt, the liver stages were comparable with those of other Hepatozoon species, and the newly amplified 18S ribosomal ribonucleic acid sequences were similar to other sequenced Hepatozoon species, justifying the reassignment of Ha. rawashi to Hepatozoon rawashi as reported by others.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"606-612"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145075578","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"REVISION OF THE LECANICEPHALIDEAN GENUS FLAPOCEPHALUS DESHMUKH, 1979 (EUCESTODA) FROM COWTAIL RAYS (GENUS PASTINACHUS RÜPPELL) (MYLIOBATIFORMES: DASYATIDAE JORDAN AND GILBERT) WITH THE DESCRIPTION OF FOUR NEW SPECIES.","authors":"Katherine M Hanselman, Ramajeyam Gobiraj, Kirsten Jensen","doi":"10.1645/24-92","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1645/24-92","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The genus Flapocephalus Deshmukh, 1979, is a little-known group of lecanicephalidean cestodes parasitizing cowtail rays (genus Pastinachus Rüppell) mainly in the Indo-Pacific region. Since the erection of the genus, with Flapocephalus trygonis Deshmukh, 1979, as the type species, and the description of a second species, Flapocephalus saurashtri Shinde and Deshmukh, 1979, both from Pastinachus sephen (Fabricius) from India, reports of this genus have been restricted mainly to brief mentions or discussion of its validity and taxonomic placement. More recently, phylogenetic analyses based on molecular sequence data that included specimens of Flapocephalus have supported Flapocephalus as a distinct genus allied with the Polypocephalidae Meggitt, 1924. Limited by the amount of detail provided in the original descriptions, the unavailability of type material, and the lack of a detailed generic diagnosis, we aimed to fully characterize the genus based on newly collected specimens. A total of 38 specimens of Pastinachus, representing 3 of the 5 described species and 1 undescribed species, from throughout the Indo-Pacific region were examined for specimens of Flapocephalus. Worms were prepared for examination with light and scanning electron microscopy and as histological sections. A subset of specimens was included in a phylogenetic analysis based on data for a portion of the 28S rDNA gene. Overall, these specimens were found to include the type species, 4 new species that are described herein (Flapocephalus monostylorchis Hanselman and Jensen n. sp., Flapocephalus capitonis Hanselman and Jensen n. sp., Flapocephalus rudkinorum Hanselman and Jensen n. sp., and Flapocephalus infundibulapex Hanselman and Jensen n. sp.), and 4 putative new species. Flapocephalus trygonis is redescribed from specimens from Pastinachus ater (Macleay) from Sri Lanka, and a neotype is designated. The newly described species are distinct genetically and can be distinguished morphologically from the existing species and one another based on a combination of total length, the shape of the apical organ, and the arrangement of testes and vitelline follicles. A revised diagnosis of the genus and a key to the described species are presented, as is a hypothesis of the interrelationships resulting from a maximum likelihood analysis including 4 of the 5 described species and the 4 putative new species. The presence of 4 glandular, sac-like structures surrounded by scolex proper, with channels that open to the outside at the base of the apical organ, is reported in lecanicephalidean tapeworms for the first time.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 5","pages":"582-605"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145029678","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"TWO NEW SPECIES OF METABENEDENIELLA (MONOGENOIDEA: CAPSALIDAE: BENEDENIINAE) PARASITIZING MARINE SNAPPERS (TELEOSTEI: LUTJANIDAE) IN THE WESTERN PACIFIC OCEAN, WITH NOTES ON THE NOMENCLATURE OF METABENEDENIELLA AND METABENEDENIELLA HOPLOGNATHI.","authors":"Delane C Kritsky","doi":"10.1645/25-26","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1645/25-26","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Two new species of Capsalidae (Benedeniinae) are described from snappers (Lutjanidae) occurring in the western Pacific Ocean: Metabenedeniella bracteola n. sp. from the blubberlip snapper, Lutjanus rivulatus, collected off Lizard Island, Queensland, Australia, and Metabenedeniella duplohelix n. sp. from the mangrove red snapper, Lutjanus argentimaculatus, from off Nouméa, New Caledonia. Clarification of the nomenclature of Metabenedeniella and its type species is provided: Metabenedeniella Yamaguti, 1958. represents the valid name of the genus and Metabenedeniella hoplognathi Yamaguti, 1958, its type species. The type species is a junior subjective synonym of Epibdella (Benedenia) hoplognathi Yamaguti, 1942 [now Metabenedeniella hoplognathi (Yamaguti, 1942) Yamaguti, 1963, the valid taxonomic name of the species].</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 4","pages":"571-581"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144958052","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"TERRESTRIAL LEECHES, iDNA SURVEYS, AND BEYOND.","authors":"Michael Tessler, Mai Fahmy","doi":"10.1645/24-98","DOIUrl":"10.1645/24-98","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Terrestrial leeches have long been famous for their blood-feeding behavior, feeding on humans who venture into wet forests across much of the Indo-Pacific. More recently these leeches have emerged as a tool for detecting vertebrate diversity in conservation studies. Specifically, scientists use DNA from the bloodmeals found in these leeches' digestive tracts to identify mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds they have fed on. Although this so-called invertebrate-derived DNA (iDNA) technique has grown in popularity, few resources exist for researchers to gain familiarity with these methods. Most researchers using these methods have a vertebrate conservation focus and therefore may benefit from learning more about the leeches, which are variable and also potentially in need of conservation. For this review, we focused on providing basic information on iDNA best practices and precautions, and on Haemadipsidae leech background and taxonomy. We hope this information empowers more people who live and study in the Indo-Pacific to work with these blood-feeding worms.</p>","PeriodicalId":16659,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Parasitology","volume":"111 4","pages":"503-515"},"PeriodicalIF":1.1,"publicationDate":"2025-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144957983","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}