MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF LARVAL ANISAKID NEMATODES FROM MARINE FISHES OF MADEIRA BY A PCR-BASED APPROACH, WITH EVIDENCE FOR A NEW SPECIES

One-hundred and fifteen anisakid larvae from 3 different fish hosts, Aphanopus carbo, Scomber japonicus, and Trachurus picturatus, caught in Madeiran waters, were identified by PCR-RFLP. Three distinct species were identified in A. carbo, namely Anisakis simplex sensu stricto, Anisakis pegreffii, and Anisakis ziphidarum; 5 in S. japonicus, i.e., A. simplex s.s., A. pegreffii, Anisakis physeteris, Anisakis typica, and A. ziphidarum; and 3 in T. picturatus, i.e., A. simplex s.s., A. pegreffii, and A. typica. Anisakis simplex s.s. was the most frequent species in both A. carbo and S. japonicus (54% and 23.5%, respectively). Anisakis pegreffii and A. physeteris occurred with a frequency of 20.6% in S. japonicus, whereas in T. picturatus the most frequent species was A. typica (41.9%), followed by A. simplex s.s. (32.3%). Furthermore, A. carbo and S. japonicus were infected by an apparently undescribed taxon, provisionally named Anisakis sp. A. Based on estimations of the genetic distance, this new taxon seems...