A5054520326- Parasite Biology and Host Interactions
- Fish Biology and Ecology Studies
- Genetic diversity and population structure
- Parasites and Host Interactions
- Aquatic Ecosystems and Biodiversity
- Fish biology, ecology, and behavior
- Zoonotic diseases and public health
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Identification and Quantification in Food
- Fish Ecology and Management Studies
- Aquatic Invertebrate Ecology and Behavior
- Evolution and Genetic Dynamics
- Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Marine Ecology and Invasive Species
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- Bird parasitology and diseases
- Helminth infection and control
- Ichthyology and Marine Biology
- Animal and Plant Science Education
- Sustainability and Climate Change Governance
- Aquaculture disease management and microbiota
- Planarian Biology and Electrostimulation
- Parasitic Diseases Research and Treatment
- Environmental DNA in Biodiversity Studies
KU Leuven
2016-2025
Masaryk University
2014-2025
Hasselt University
2016-2025
University of Liège
2024-2025
Institute of Natural Sciences
2015-2025
Royal Museum for Central Africa
2012-2025
Finnish Museum of Natural History
2018-2024
University of Helsinki
2018-2024
Hellenic Centre for Marine Research
2014-2022
University of Antwerp
2022
Some taxonomic groups are less amenable to mitochondrial DNA barcoding than others. Due the paucity of molecular information understudied and huge diversity within flatworms, primer design has been hampered. Indeed, all attempts develop universal flatworm-specific COI markers have failed so far. We demonstrate how high variability contamination problems limit possibilities for using standard COI-based protocols in flatworms. As a consequence, identification methods often rely on other widely...
The stunning diversity of cichlid fishes has greatly enhanced our understanding speciation and radiation. Little is known about the evolution parasites. Parasites are abundant components biodiversity, whose typically exceeds that their hosts. In first comprehensive phylogenetic parasitological analysis a vertebrate radiation, we study monogenean parasites infecting tropheine cichlids from Lake Tanganyika. Monogeneans flatworms usually body surface gills fishes. contrast to many other...
We discuss geographical distribution and phylogeny of Dactylogyridea (Monogenea) parasitizing Cichlidae to elucidate their hosts' history. Although mesoparasitic Monogenea ( Enterogyrus spp.) show typical vicariant distribution, ectoparasitic representatives from different continents are not considered sister taxa, hence cannot result vicariance alone. Because the close host-parasite relationship, this might indicate that present-day cichlid may also reflect dispersal through coastal or...
Abstract Background Stress responses are key the survival of parasites and, consequently, also evolutionary success these organisms. Despite this importance, our understanding evolution molecular pathways dealing with environmental stressors in parasitic animals remains limited. Here, we tested link between adaptive parasite stress response genes and their ecological diversity species richness. We comparatively investigated antioxidant, heat shock, osmoregulatory, behaviour-related (...
Cichlidogyrus spp. (Monogenea, Ancyrocephalidae) are common parasites of cichlid fishes from Africa and the Levant. They display important morphological variation in their attachment apparatus infect a broad host spectrum throughout wide geographic range. Thus, they offer an interesting model to investigate what extent phenotypic variability organ among congeners is related specificity, geographic/environmental components, or phylogeny. A geometric morphometric approach was carried out...
Tadpole shrimp (Crustacea, Notostraca) are iconic inhabitants of temporary aquatic habitats worldwide. Often cited as prime examples evolutionary stasis, surviving representatives closely resemble fossils older than 200 mya, suggestive an ancient origin. Despite significant interest in the group 'living fossils' taxonomy taxa is still under debate and both phylogenetic relationships among different lineages timing diversification remain unclear. We constructed a molecular phylogeny...
Parasite switches to new host species are of fundamental scientific interest and may be considered an important speciation mechanism. For numerous monogenean fish parasites, infecting different hosts is associated with morphological adaptations, in particular the attachment organ (haptor). However, haptoral morphology Cichlidogyrus spp. (Monogenea, Dactylogyridea), parasites African cichlids, has been mainly linked phylogenetic rather than constraints. Here we determined position amieti, a...
Abstract Lake Tanganyika is well-known for its high species-richness and rapid radiation processes. Its assemblage of cichlid fishes recently gained momentum as a framework to study parasite ecology evolution. It offers rare chance investigate the influence deepwater lifestyle in freshwater fish-parasite system. Our represents first investigation intraspecific genetic structure related host specificity lake. focused on monogenean flatworm Cichlidogyrus casuarinus infecting cichlids belonging...
Monogenean flatworms are the main ectoparasites of fishes. Representatives species-rich families Gyrodactylidae and Dactylogyridae, especially those infecting cichlid fishes clariid catfishes, important parasites in African aquaculture, even more so due to massive anthropogenic translocation their hosts worldwide. Several questions on evolution, such as phylogenetic position Macrogyrodactylus highly speciose Gyrodactylus, remain unresolved with available molecular markers. Also, diagnostics...
Abstract Aim The formation history of Africa's current river basins remains largely unknown. In order to date changes in landscape and climate, we studied the biogeography African freshwater fish with largest natural distribution. We also validated biogeographical units. Location Continental Africa. Taxon Clarias gariepinus sl. Methods investigated mitochondrial cyt b sequences 443 individuals from 97 localities, using a haplotype network genetic analysis. inferred dated phylogeny maximum...
Many disease ecologists and conservation biologists believe that the world is wormier than it used to be-that is, parasites are increasing in abundance through time. This argument intuitively appealing. Ecologists typically see parasitic infections, their association with disease, as a negative endpoint, accustomed attributing outcomes human interference environment, so slots neatly into our worldview habitat destruction, biodiversity loss climate change should have collateral consequence of...
Zooplankton species richness is typically assessed through analysis of active community samples. These samples ought to be collected at many different locations in the lake and multiple occasions throughout year so as cover spatial temporal heterogeneity structure. A number studies have shown that high numbers can retrieved with a limited effort hatching dormant eggs isolated from sediments. However, differ their propensities hatch, resulting biased assessments composition, abundance...
SUMMARY Lake Tanganyika harbours the most diverse endemic cichlid fish assemblage of Africa, but its monogenean parasites have not been investigated. Here we report, for first time, on Gyrodactylus in this hotspot biodiversity. Haptor morphometrics and nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences revealed 3 new species Zambian Simochromis diagramma: sturmbaueri n. sp., G. thysi sp. zimbae Their distinct morphology strong genetic differentiation suggest that they belong to distant lineages within genus ,...
Within the Atlantic–Mediterranean region, 'sand gobies' are abundant and widespread, play an important role in marine, brackish, freshwater ecosystems. They include smallest European fish, Economidichthys trichonis, which is threatened by habitat loss pollution, as several other sand gobies. Key to good conservation management accurate account of number evolutionary significant units. Nevertheless, many taxonomic questions remain unresolved within clade, molecular studies lacking, especially...
The unparalleled biodiversity of Lake Tanganyika (Africa) has fascinated biologists for over a century; its unique cichlid communities are preferred model evolutionary research. Although species delineation is, in most cases, relatively straightforward, higher-order classifications were shown not to agree with monophyletic groups. Here, traditional morphological methods meet their limitations. A typical example the tropheine cichlids currently belonging Simochromis and Pseudosimochromis....