First Molecular Identification of in Lake Malawi Implicated in Transmitting Parasites.

The freshwater snail genus plays a vital role in transmitting parasites of the group. A hybrid schistosome between and has been recently detected using DNA-based identification methods in school children along the Lake Malawi shoreline in Mangochi District. This finding raised the need for contemporary revaluation of local interactions between schistosomes and snails, with a particular focus on snail species within the group. In 2017 and 2018, malacological surveys sampled several freshwater sites in Mangochi District. Collected snails ( = 250) were characterised using cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 gene (1), with DNA barcoding of the 'Folmer' region and a rapid PCR-RFLP typing assay with double digestion with III and I restriction enzymes. DNA 1 sequence analysis, with phylogenetic tree construction, suggested the presence of at least three group taxa in Lake Malawi, alongside first reports of and which can be differentiated by PCR-RFLP methods. In addition, a total of 30 of the 106 group snails (28.30%) were positive to the -specific screen using real-time PCR methods. This study provides new insight into the recent changes in the epidemiology of urogenital schistosomiasis as likely driven by a new diversity of group snails within the Lake.