الملخص

Leeches of the Hirudinidae family are obligate parasitic organisms in some types of vertebrate animals. The interest in using leeches for medical purposes has been increasing lately. (18) Medicinal leeches were obtained from different clinics & institutes in Baghdad, Iraq, including the Research and Training, Al-Yermok Center, and Rafi Center for Chinese Medicine, during the period from (January to March 2025) . The nine leech samples collected were morphologically examined. Molecular analysis was conducted on only two specimens, using the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. Molecular analysis revealed a (91%) genetic similarity between the examined samples & the reference sequence of Hirudo verbana deposited in GenBank (Accession No. EF446693.1), indicating a close phylogenetic relationship. Phylogenetic tree analysis further supported the clustering of the studied specimens with reference to H. verbana isolates. The morphological and molecular findings confirmed that all examined medicinal leeches belonged to Hirudo verbana. These results demonstrated the usefulness of the COI gene as a reliable molecular marker for species identification and genetic characterization of medicinal leeches in Iraq.