Genetic diversity and distribution of Fasciola hepatica haplotypes in Iran: Molecular and phylogenetic studies.

Fasciolosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Fasciola hepatica and Fasciola gigantica. Over the last decade, diagnostic tools to detect and differentiate Fasciola species have improved, but our knowledge of the distribution of haplotypes and gene flow of this parasite is not comprehensive yet. The purpose of this study was to investigate this gap in the epidemiology of F. hepatica in different provinces of Iran between 2015 and 2017. Isolated Fasciola were collected from abattoirs in 9 provinces. The partial sequence of mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 1 (ND1) gene was used for the identification and molecular analysis of F. hepatica isolates. The amplified PCR products were purified and subjected to direct sequencing for subsequent construction of phylogenetic tree and network analysis. In the 130 subjects analyzed, 37 ND1 haplotypes were detected. This is the first study in Iran which investigates F. hepatica population and its genetic structure, based on mitochondrial ND1 marker in different geographical regions of Iran.