Updated morphology, histopathology and molecular phylogeny of Myxobolus hearti, cardiac myxosporea in gibel carp, Carassius gibelio (Bloch)

The original description of Myxobolus hearti is supplemented with new data on spore morphology, histopathology and molecular phylogeny. Myxobolus hearti are found in the heart ventricle of the gibel carp, Carassius gibelio (Bloch), where they form whitish oval or irregularly shaped plasmodia. Mature spores are oval or shortly ellipsoidal in frontal view, lemon‐shaped in sutural view and eye‐shaped in apical view. The spores are 14.12 ± 0.35 (13.6–15) μm long (mean ± SD), 11.85 ± 0.34 ± 0.36 (11–12) μm wide and 7.32 ± 0.36 (7–8) μm thick. The two polar capsules are equal in size, 6.11 ± 0.29 (6–7) μm long and 3.89 ± 0.31(3–4) μm wide, and are long pyriform in shape. Polar filaments have six or seven coils situated perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the polar capsules. Histopathology indicates that the plasmodia are encased by the host connective tissue, and no inflammatory responses are found in the heart ventricles. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 18S small‐subunit ribosomal DNA sequences indicates that M. hearti is, genetically, most similar to Henneguya doneci, a gill‐infecting species.