New Data on Myxobolus enoblei (Cnidaria: Myxobolidae): A Parasite of Smallmouth Buffalo Ictiobus bubalus (Cypriniformes: Catostomidae)

Abstract Myxobolus enoblei has previously been reported from the gills of smallmouth buffalo, Ictiobus bubalus, although to date no supplemental molecular data are available. As such, identification is based solely on morphological characters, which can be ambiguous. Herein we supplement detailed morphological analysis with molecular data (18S ribosomal RNA gene sequence). Myxospores were spherical (measurements in micrometers and presented as mean ± SD followed by range in parentheses), 14.2 ± 0.5 (13.4–15.0) in length, 12.1 ± 0.5 (11.3–13.0) in width, and 7.3 ± 0.4 (6.8–8.0) thick. There were 2 pyriform polar capsules, 7.6 ± 0.3 (7.0–8.0) in length and 4.1 ± 0.2 (3.6–4.6) in width with 6–7 turns in the coiled polar filament. When compared to other Myxobolus spp. from catostomid fish, the morphological characters of the isolate were consistent with Myxobolus enoblei, originally characterized from the gills of smallmouth buffalo from Illinois, U.S.A. A BLASTn search of the 18S rRNA gene resulted in no ide...