Phylogenetic status of a lung fluke in the Philippines based on mitochondrial genome

Abstract

Based on a near-complete mitochondrial DNA sequence, the phylogenetic status of a lung fluke collected in the Philippines was evaluated. The lung fluke from Leyte Island, Philippines, resembles Paragonimus westermani morphologically and is sometimes regarded as a subspecies, P westermani filipinus. In this study, all mitochondrial genes of the Leyte form were sequenced: 12 subunits of mitochondrial enzymes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes and 21 transfer RNAs. The gene order is the same as that of the previously-published P. westermani from Korea. All genes are transcribed in the same direction. The sequence from Leyte was 88.8% identical to the previously-published se- quence (accession No. AF219379). This is further evidence that the Philippine form should be regarded as specifi- cally distinct from the form in East Asia (China, Japan and Korea). This conclusion is strengthened by the observa- tion that the molluscan host of the Philippine form is of a different family from that of the East Asian form