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Cryptocotyle (Digenea) in commercial fish species sampled in the English Channel and the North Sea : biodiversity and infestation levels
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Edité par CCSD -
International audience. Marine fish are often speckled with “black spots” caused by host response to larval trematode infection. These unesthetic spots and the presence of parasites may lead to important economic loss in fishery and may have impacts on public health. As many other zoonotic trematodes, Cryptocotyle (Lühe, 1899) are present in marine fish species. So far, its impact on human health is still unknown and few publications exist dealing with its distribution among commercially important fish. The present study reports for the first time, Cryptocotyle distribution from marine commercial fish species in the English Channel and the North Sea. An epidemiological study was performed on seven fish species. The samples were collected during sea campaigns in January 2019 and 2020. Infection levels were estimated by counting visible black spots or lesions due to parasite infection on the fish skin. Metacercariae were isolated and characterised from morphological and molecular perspectives.The prevalence, intensity and abundancy showed differences between fish species and fishing areas. Whiting and pout were the most infected species for all sampling areas. C. lingua was mainly identified and some C. concava and Bucephalidae were also observed.This survey constitutes the first description of Cryptocotyle metacercariae in these marine ecosystems.