Molecular identification larvae of Onchobothrium antarcticum (Cestoda: Tetraphyllidea) from marbled rockcod, Notothenia rossii, in Admiralty Bay (King George Island, Antarctica)

Antarctic bony fishes are infected with cestode larvae belonging to the order Tetraphyllidea (parasites as adults in chondrichthyans). Larvae of the Tetraphyllidea differ from each other in the morphology of their scoleces and represent five forms. There are larvae with bothridia subdivided into one, two and three loculi, bothridia sac-like in shape and bothridia undivided with hook-like projections. Only one species of the family Onchobothriidae, Onchobothrium antarcticum, has been described from Antarctica and larvae with trilocular bothridia were assigned to this cestode species. In this study, ten larvae obtained from Notothenia rossii and three adult specimens of Onchobothrium antarcticum isolated from Bathyraja eatonii were examined. A partial sequence of cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 of three adult specimens and four larvae was identical. The remaining six larval sequences differed from the sequences obtained from adult cestodes. Partial sequences of lsrDNA of all analyzed larvae were identical. These results confirm the taxonomic affiliation of the larvae with trilocular bothridia parasitizing marbled rockcod in Antarctica as Onchobothrium antarcticum.