Characterization of South American Snails of the Genus (Basommatophora: Planorbidae) and (Platyhelminthes: Trematoda) in Molluscs by PCR-RFLP.

The identification of snails of the genus can be done using morphological characteristics which depends on the size of the snails and skill and knowledge of researcher. These methods sometimes are not adequate for identification of species. The PCR-RFLP, using the ITS region of the rDNA, has been used to identify Brazilian species of the genus . Nevertheless, there is a lack of information about snails from other Latin American countries. In addition, some snails may be infected by and when submitted to PCR-RFLP they show molecular profiles different from those previously standardized for the other mollusc species. In this work the molecular profiles of 15 species and the subspecies were established by PCR-RFLP of ITS-rDNA with the enzyme I. Moreover, the molecular profiles of host species, , , , and , infected by were also established. The molluscs were dissected to permit morphological identification. These results contribute to a correct identification of snails of the genus and detection of these snails infected by .