Sympatric distribution of three human Taenia tapeworms collected between 1935 and 2005 in Korea

Hyeong Kyu Jeon, Hyu Heon Kim, Jong Yil Chai, Hyun Jong Yang, Han Jong Rim, Keeseon S. Eom

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

25 Scopus citations

Abstract

Taeniasis has been known as one of the prevalent parasitic infections in Korea. Until recently, Taenia saginata had long been considered a dominant, and widely distributed species but epidemiological profiles of human Taenia species in Korea still remain unclear. In order to better understand distribution patterns of human Taenia tapeworms in Korea, partial nucleotide sequences of mitochondrial cox1 and ITS2 (internal transcribed spacer 2) were determined, along with morphological examinations, on 68 Taenia specimens obtained from university museum collections deposited since 1935. Genomic DNA was extracted from formalin-preserved specimens. Phylogenetic relationships among the genotypes (cox1 haplotype) detected in this study were inferred using the neighbor-joining method as a tree building method. Morphological and genetic analyses identified 3 specimens as T. solium, 51 specimens as T. asiatica, and 14 specimens as T. saginata. Our results indicate that all 3 Taenia tapeworms are sympatrically distributed in Korea with T. asiatica dominating over T. saginata and T. solium.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)235-241
Number of pages7
JournalThe Korean journal of parasitology
Volume46
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 2008

Keywords

  • Molecular identification
  • Sympatric distribution
  • T. asiatica
  • T. saginata
  • Taenia solium

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Sympatric distribution of three human Taenia tapeworms collected between 1935 and 2005 in Korea'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this