Myxozoan parasites disseminated via oligochaete worms as live food for aquarium fishes: descriptions of aurantiactinomyxon and raabeia actinospore types.

A total of 7 samples of live freshwater oligochaetes (mixed species), sold as 'tubifex' worms as food for aquarium fishes, were purchased over a 1 yr period from several pet shops in Munich, Germany, and screened for parasitic infections of myxozoans. The water associated with 5 samples contained actinospores at the time of purchase; 6 samples subsequently released spores in the laboratory. In all, 12 types of actinospores (Myxozoa: Myxosporea) from 4 collective groups were released by the oligochaetes. In the current study we provide descriptions of 2 aurantiactinomyxons (Myxobolus intimus Zaika, 1965 and type 1 nov.) and 3 raabeias (type 1 and 2 nov., Raabeia type 1 of Oumouna et al., 2003); descriptions of the 5 triactinomyxon and 2 hexactinomyxon types have been published previously. We include both raabeia and echinactinomyxon types in differential diagnoses of our raabeia forms because a clear distinction between these groups no longer exists in the literature. Comparison of 18S rDNA sequence data revealed that 1 of the novel aurantiactinomyxons was Myxobolus intimus. The sale of worms hundreds of km away from their point of origin is a means of dissemination of myxozoan parasites.