Genome-wide exploration reveals distinctive northern and southern variants of Clonorchis sinensis in the Far East.
Mol Ecol Resour
; 23(4): 833-843, 2023 May.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36727564
ABSTRACT
Clonorchis sinensis is a carcinogenic liver fluke that causes clonorchiasis-a neglected tropical disease (NTD) affecting ~35 million people worldwide. No vaccine is available, and chemotherapy relies on one anthelmintic, praziquantel. This parasite has a complex life history and is known to infect a range of species of intermediate (freshwater snails and fish) and definitive (piscivorous) hosts. Despite this biological complexity and the impact of this biocarcinogenic pathogen, there has been no previous study of molecular variation in this parasite on a genome-wide scale. Here, we conducted the first extensive nuclear genomic exploration of C. sinensis individuals (n = 152) representing five distinct populations from mainland China, and one from Far East Russia, and revealed marked genetic variation within this species between "northern" and "southern" geographical regions. The discovery of this variation indicates the existence of biologically distinct variants within C. sinensis, which may have distinct epidemiology, pathogenicity and/or chemotherapic responsiveness. The detection of high heterozygosity within C. sinensis specimens suggests that this parasite has developed mechanisms to readily adapt to changing environments and/or host species during its life history/evolution. From an applied perspective, the identification of invariable genes could assist in finding new intervention targets in this parasite, given the major clinical relevance of clonorchiasis. From a technical perspective, the genomic-informatic workflow established herein will be readily applicable to a wide range of other parasites that cause NTDs.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Clonorquiasis
/
Clonorchis sinensis
Tipo de estudio:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
Límite:
Animals
País/Región como asunto:
Asia
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Mol Ecol Resour
Año:
2023
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Australia