Life cycle of Renylaima capensis, a brachylaimid trematode of shrews and slugs in South Africa: two-host and three-host transmission modalities suggested by epizootiology and DNA sequencing

Abstract Background The life cycle of the brachylaimid trematode species Renylaima capensis, infecting the urinary system of the shrew Myosorex varius (Mammalia: Soricidae: Crocidosoricinae) in the Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve, South Africa, has been elucidated by a study of its larval stages, epizootiological data in local snails and mammals during a 34-year period, and its verification with mtDNA sequencing. Methods Parasites obtained from dissected animals were mounted in microscope slides for the parasitological study and measured according to standardized methods. The mitochondrial DNA cox 1 gene was sequenced by the dideoxy chain-termination method. Results The slugs Ariostralis …