Ceratomyxa siganicola Zhang, Zhao, Yang & Yang, 2019

Yang, Chengzhong, Yang, Yuting, Chen, Xue, Yang, Shenghua, Zhou, Yang, Ma, Honggang, Liu, Yang & Zhao, Yuanjun, 2025, Integrative taxonomy and phylogenetic analyses of two Ceratomyxa species (Myxozoa, Ceratomyxidae) from the China Sea, including a new species description, ZooKeys 1250, pp. 359-375 : 359-375

Ceratomyxa siganicola Zhang, Zhao, Yang & Yang, 2019

Type host.

Mottled spinefoot Siganus fuscescens Houttuyn, 1782 ( Perciformes , Siganidae ) for strain 1 (thereafter called S 1 for short), strain 2 (thereafter called S 2 for short), strain 3 (thereafter called S 3 for short) and strain 5 (thereafter called S 5 for short).

Other host.

Mozambique tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus Peters, 1852 ( Perciformes : Cichlidae ) for strain 4 (thereafter called S 4 for short).

Infection site.

Gallbladder.

Date and localities of sampling.

April 24, 2021 in coastal waters of Xiamen, East China Sea, China ( 24°28'2"N, 118°4'41"E) for S 1; May 1, 2021 in coastal waters of Xiamen, East China Sea, China ( 24°27'53"N, 118°4'47"E) for S 2; November 9, 2020 in coastal waters of Fangchenggang, South China Sea, China ( 21°41'8"N, 108°21'25"E) for S 3; November 9, 2020 in coastal waters of Fangchenggang, South China Sea, China ( 21°41'27"N, 108°21'3"E) for S 4; August 5, 2021 in coastal waters of Wanning, South China Sea, China ( 18°45'3"N, 110°27'49"E) for S 5.

Prevalence.

66.7 % (8 / 12) for S 1; 33.3 % (5 / 15) for S 2; 25.0 % (2 / 8) for S 3; 33.3 % (6 / 18) for S 4; 40.0 % (10 / 25) for S 5.

Pathology.

The parasite is found in the gallbladder of the host. No obvious pathological sign was observed, so the extent of damage to the host remains unknown.

Deposition of materials.

Specimens of C. siganicola (mounted in glycerin-alcohol-formalin; accession number XM 2021042401 for S 1, XM 2021050101 for S 2, GX 2020110901 for S 3, GX 2020110902 for S 4, HN 2021080501 for S 5) and DNA (accession number XM- 2021042401 dna for S 1, XM- 2021050101 dna for S 2, GX- 2020110901 dna for S 3, GX- 2020110902 dna for S 4, HN- 2021080501 dna for S 5) were deposited in the collection center of Animal Biology Key Laboratory of Chongqing Education Commission of China, Chongqing, PR China.

Description.

Immature myxospores in the vegetative stage displayed irregular shapes with two faintly discernible shell valves. Despite the irregular morphology, two polar capsules were clearly visible (Fig. 2 D ). Mature myxospores exhibited morphological traits consistent with the genus Ceratomyxa . In side sutural view, myxospores were boat-shaped, with two smooth, symmetrical shell valves terminating in straight, blunt ends. The sutural line was straight and distinct, dividing the myxospore into two equal valves (Fig. 2 E, F ). Measurements of mature myxospores ( N = 30) revealed a thickness of 19.2 ± 5 (17.7–21.5) µm and a length of 4.8 ± 0.6 (3.8–6.0) µm. The posterior angle was slightly concave, measuring 171.8 ± 3.3 ° (162.7–179.4 °). Each myxospore contained two spherical, equal-sized polar capsules with a diameter of 2.5 ± 0.3 (2.0–3.2) µm and polar filaments with 3–4 coils. The morphological features observed in this sample align with previous descriptions of C. siganicola , particularly with the original description by Zhang et al. (2019).

Figures

Figure 2. Light microscope images and line drawings of ceratomyxids from this study. A – C. Immature myxospores (black arrows), mature myxospore, and line drawing of Ceratomyxa dactyloptena sp. nov., respectively D – F. Immature myxospore (black arrow), mature myxospore, and line drawing of Ceratomyxa siganicola, respectively.