Complete cox1 gene and ITS sequence of Hirudinaria manillensis and molecular evolution analysis
Molecular phylogenetics study published in Scientific Reports (2025)
Abstract
Hirudinaria manillensis is an important blood-sucking medicinal leech widely distributed in Southeast Asia and southern China. It has been shown to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Molecular identification technology has developed rapidly, and the results are accurate and stable, which can help us to obtain rich biological information of samples for genetic evolution analysis. This study designed 3 pairs of primers for complete cox 1 gene. After sequencing by PCR products and splicing by SeqMan software, the full-length sequence of cox 1 gene was obtained by annotation of open reading frame (ORFs) on MITOS2 platform. The cox 1 gene with a length of 1536nt was obtained, and the species was identified as Hirudinaria manillensis. The Hd value and FST value of cox 1 gene were 0.858 and 0.10938, which were higher than the Hd value of ITS (0.314) and the FST value close to 0. The nucleotide diversity and GST values of the two genes were very low, and the Tajima's D values of the neutral test were negative, without statistical significance. The genetic distance calculated by the Kimura-2 parameter method was very low. According to the biological information provided by the samples in this study, the population size of Hirudinaria manillensis in southern China was on the rise, but stable genetic diversity was not formed, and there was no obvious population differentiation and geographical isolation. This may be due to the mature artificial breeding technology in recent years, which enabled Hirudinaria manillensis to migrate from the traditional gathering places and breed in a large number in the new environment and migration site. At present, there are many molecular barcoding data of cox 1 gene in the NCBI database, but there is no complete cox 1 gene sequence as a reference, and the related ITS sequence information is more limited, indicating that there is still a lot of space for gene research of Hirudinaria manillensis.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Zusammenfassung
Complete sequencing of cox1 and ITS regions of Hirudinaria manillensis (Asian buffalo leech) enables fine-resolution phylogenetic placement and population analysis.
Warum dies für die Hirudotherapie relevant ist
This study determined the complete cox1 gene (1536 nt) and ITS sequences of Hirudinaria manillensis, a blood-sucking medicinal leech from Southeast Asia and southern China, and conducted molecular evolution and population genetics analyses. The cox1 gene showed high haplotype diversity (Hd = 0.858) but low nucleotide diversity and genetic differentiation (FST = 0.10938), with negative Tajima's D values and low Kimura-2 parameter genetic distances, indicating an expanding population without stable genetic diversity or significant geographic isolation—possibly due to mature artificial breeding technology enabling range expansion. This work is relevant to ASH's domain from a taxonomy, population genetics, and species-authentication perspective for a recognized medicinal leech species. However, the study is purely molecular taxonomic and phylogeographic; it contains no data on therapeutic compounds, anticoagulant activity, secretome composition, or clinical efficacy.
Zitation
Complete cox1 gene and ITS sequence of Hirudinaria manillensis and molecular evolution analysis.
Wang W et al. · Scientific reports, 2025
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