Abstract
We determined the morphological taxonomy of eighteen nematophagous fungi (NF), as well as their in vitro predatory activity against Haemonchus contortus infective larvae (L3). Fungi were classified into six genera and three species, the most common of which were Monacrosporium eudermatum and Arthrobotrys oligospora. We then sequenced five NF isolates using ITS4 and ITS5 primers. These sequences showed high identity with sequences from the NCBI database (98-99%). In contrast, alignments among the same genera and species demonstrated 83–97% identity. Polymorphisms observed between Arthrobotrys and Monacrosporium appear to be associated with differences in biological function, nonspecific mutations, evolutionary processes, feeding behaviour, predatory activity, and microecosystems.
Highlights
The livestock industry is commonly affected by gastrointestinal parasitic nematodiasis, which causes serious deterioration in the health of both cattle and sheep worldwide [1]
Most of the fungal isolates corresponded to the species M. eudermatum (8 isolates); four isolates were identified as A. oligospora, two as A. musiformis, and one as A. kirghizica
Some species of the Monacrosporium genus have been considered potential agents for control of animal parasitic diseases [24,25,26]. Another species we identified was A. oligospora which is the most intensively studied nematophagous species worldwide and a number of important research works are published every year about its use against parasitic nematodes of either plants [27, 28] or animals [29, 30]
Summary
The livestock industry is commonly affected by gastrointestinal parasitic nematodiasis, which causes serious deterioration in the health of both cattle and sheep worldwide [1]. A number of methods of control have been proposed to reduce both the parasitic burden in the animals and the economic consequences for animal production; the only control method that is currently available in most countries is the regular administration of chemical anthelmintic drugs as deworming treatments. While such drugs help to reduce the parasitic burden in the animals, disadvantages can include the rising threat of inefficacy due to anthelmintic resistance and residues in animal products that are possibly toxic for human consumption and for the environment. Precise taxonomic identification of nematophagous fungi isolates is the first step in selecting possible candidates to assess activity against nematodes in both laboratory and field trials. Valuable taxonomic identification guides for nematophagous fungi were published by Drechsler, 1941 [3], Dollfus, 1946 [4], and Duddington, 1955 [5], and a highly descriptive and useful
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