New record of Trichodina unionis (Ciliophora, Trichodinidae) from freshwater gastropods in Bangkok, Thailand

Trichodinids, which are ciliate protists, are causative agents of an aquatic animal disease, trichodiniasis, especially among both captive and wild fish. This disease can adversely affect aquaculture and have economic impacts. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the prevalence and mean intensity of Trichodina unionis infection, describe qualitative and quantitative morphological characters, and perform a molecular phylogenetic analysis. The gastropod samples were randomly collected by hand-picking and a hand net. Trichodina unionis was collected by the crushing method under a stereomicroscope. Among all 4977 examined gastropods, 55 individuals of two gastropod species, Gyraulus siamensis and Physella acuta, were found to be infected by T. unionis, with overall prevalence and mean intensity of infection of 1.11% and 16.65, respectively. The characteristics of the denticles indicated T. unionis as having moderately wide blades and moderately curved blade margins, with distinctive bend angles near the distal end. The quantitative characters showed some variations, which could be due to food availability. Molecular phylogenetic analysis conducted with 18S rRNA provided a monophyletic tree of our specimens and previously identified T. unionis, confirming species identification. This study represents the first record of T. unionis in Thailand.