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Prevalence, intensity and histopathology of fish ectoparasites of Haraz River downstream in Sorkhrud city, Mazandaran
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Sona Sarkari   , Abbas Bozorgnia Dr. * |
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Abstract: (100 Views) |
Introduction: Identification of specific parasites of a fish species and study of their population structure and its relationship with the histopathological aspect of infected organs is of particular importance in the prevention and control of fish diseases. The aim of this study is to identify the parasitic fauna of external organs of fishes of Haraz River downstream in Sorkhrud city, determination the prevalence and intensity of parasitic infection, and investigation the histopathology of infected organs.
Materials & Methods: Accordingly, 86 fish samples of three species of Cyprinus carpio, Carassius gibelio, and Alburnoides eichwaldii were caught with a mean total length of 9.05± 0.3, 9.4±0.2, and 7.5±0.1 (cm), respectively. After being anesthetized, the biometric indices of fish samples were measured; then fish ectoparasites were surveyed and tissue samples were taken from parasite-infected organs to examine pathologically. Excel software was used to draw graphs and basic statistical calculations, and SPSS software version 21 was used to perform analyzes and compare means.
Results: A total of four species of parasites including Trichodina gracilis, Dactylogyrus baueri, D. chalcalburni and Diplostomum spathaceum were isolated from the external organs of the studied fish. The investigation of the population structure of parasites showed that the most prevalent parasite was the ciliated protozoa, T. gracilis protozoan (49%) while the lowest rate was observed among trematoda (17%), and the highest rate of infection to all parasitic groups was seen in common carp. At least one parasitic species has been found in 81% of common carp. The Pearson correlations were used to measure the strength of the linear relationship between the total length of fish with the severity of the infection and the number of parasitic species in each fish, and the results showed a significant relationship between the variables (p<0.05).
Conclusion: With increasing the total length of fish, the intensity of infection with different groups of parasites, as well as the number of parasitic species found has increased. In addition, the finding indicated that the frequency of the host population has a direct and positive effect on the incidence and prevalence of the parasite. Also, the histopathological survey of infected organs showed that in spite of the low-intensity parasitic infections, tissue damages are visible, especially in small fish-sized. |
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| Keywords: Prevalence, Intensity, Histopathology, Parasites, Fish, Haraz River |
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Full-Text [PDF 1295 kb]
(32 Downloads)
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Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2026/08/13 | Accepted: 2025/04/30 | Published: 2025/04/30
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