DESCRIPTION AND PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS OF MONOCERCUS VILLOT 1982 FROM SOREX MONTICULA COLLECTED FROM THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS OF NEW MEXICO

Name

Devin Skelton, Georgia Southern UniversityFollow

Publication Date

4-6-2023

Major

Biology (B.S.B.)

Document Type and Release Option

Thesis (restricted to Georgia Southern)

Faculty Mentor

Stephen Greiman

Abstract

Shrews, small insectivorous mammals, host a diversity of tapeworms mostly in the family Hymenolepididae, but one genus is in the Dilepididae (i.e. Monocercus). This genus, with only one described species, Monocercus soricis, is greatly understudied in North America. In the fall of 2015, we collected 15 montane shrews (Sorex monticola) from Cowles, New Mexico in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. From two individuals, we identified a new species of Monocercus. Morphological characteristics, 28S rDNA sequences, and complete mitochondrial (mt) genome sequences were used to differentiate this new species from M. soricis and Eurasian species. We sequenced, assembled, and annotated the mt genome of the new species. Mitochondrial genomes were assembled from Illumina HiSeq whole genome sequence data. Bioinformatic programs NOVOPlasty and Geneious were used to isolate and assemble the mt genomes, which were annotated using both Geneious (protein coding genes (12) and rRNAs (2)) and ARWEN (tRNAs (22)). A phylogenetic analysis of the Cyclophylidea was ran and is the first to include any species in the family Dilepididae.

Thesis Summary

New species description of a tapeworm in the genus Monocercus. Including morphological and molecular differentiation.

Recommended Citation

Skelton, Devin, "DESCRIPTION AND PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS OF MONOCERCUS VILLOT 1982 FROM SOREX MONTICULA COLLECTED FROM THE SANGRE DE CRISTO MOUNTAINS OF NEW MEXICO" (2023). Honors College Theses. 841.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/honors-theses/841