140/150: Don’t Let the Scabies Mite Bite!

Animalia: Arthropoda: Arachnida: Sarcoptiformes: Sarcoptidae: Sarcoptes: Sarcoptes scabiei (Linnaeus, 1758)

Unfortunately, bite isn’t all that they do. Sarcoptes scabiei is a type of mite that burrows into the epidermis of the skin in humans and multiple other animals. In order to penetrate the skin, scabies mites secrete a pool of what is presumably saliva around their body, their outer layer dissolves, and as it sinks into the skin, their legs seem to move in a digging like motion until they become completely submerged. Mating takes place only once and leaves the female fertile for the rest of her life so as the female burrows, they simultaneously deposit eggs. The female remains in the skin and continues to lengthen her burrow and lay eggs for the rest of her 1 to 2-month life. This infestation is better known as scabies, it creates an itchy red rash on the surface of the skin and can last for months if left untreated. Interestingly, scabies is actually one of the first diseases in humans for which the cause was known and to this day, at any given time, there are approximately 130 million cases of scabies in the world! #Canada150 #Biodiversity150

Here’s the barcode sequence information for this species:

Process ID: BBAM007-16

nucleotide sequence

AACTTTATATTTTATTTTTGGTATATGATCAGGGTTCTTAGGAGCTGGATTTAGTATGTTAATTCGATACCAATTATCTCAACCAATAGGAATTTCTATAAATTCTATATTTTATAATTCAGTTGTAACCGCCCATGCTTTTATTATAATTTTTTTTATAGTAATACCTATTATAATAGGAGGATTTGGAAATTTATTAATTCCTTTAATATTAGGCTCTGCTGATATAGCTTACCCTCGATTAAATAATATAAGTTTTTGGTTACTTCCACCATCTTTAACTTTATTACTAATTTCTTTATTGTGTGGAACTGGTAGAGGAACTGGCTGAACTATTTATCCTCCTTTATCTAGAATCACTTATCATTCAAATATGTCTGTAGATTTTACAATTGTAAGATTACATATTGCTGGAATTTCTTCTATTTTAAGTTCTATCAATTTTATTGTAACTATTTATAATATAAAAATAAAAGGAATAAGATGATCAAACTTAACTCTTTTTGCTTGATCTGTTTTATTAACTTCTTTTTTATTAGTTTTCTCATTACCAGTATTAGCAGCAGCTTTAACAATACTATTAACAGATCGAAATTTAAGAACTTCATTTTTTGATCCTATTGGAGGAGGTGATCCTATTTTATATCAACACTTATTT

amino acid sequence

TLYFIFGMWSGFLGAGFSMLIRYQLSQPMGISMNSMFYNSVVTAHAFIMIFFMVMPIMMGGFGNLLIPLMLGSADMAYPRLNNMSFWLLPPSLTLLLISLLCGTGSGTGWTIYPPLSSITYHSNMSVDFTIVSLHIAGISSILSSINFIVTIYNMKMKGMSWSNLTLFAWSVLLTSFLLVFSLPVLAAALTMLLTDRNLSTSFFDPIGGGDPILYQHLF

Learn more about it’s BIN (Barcode Index Number): BOLD:ACQ1853