Isolation and Phylogenetic Relationships of Bat Trypanosomes from Different Biomes in Mato Grosso, Brazil

• Published in: The Journal of parasitology Vol. 99; no. 6; pp. 1071 - 1076
• Main Authors: Marcili, Arlei, da Costa, Andrea P, Soares, Herbert S, Acosta, Igor da C. L, de Lima, Julia T. R, Minervino, Antonio H. H, Melo, Andréia T. L, Aguiar, Daniel M, Pacheco, Richard C, Gennari, Solange M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Society of Parasitologists 01-12-2013; Allen Press Inc
• Subjects: Animals; barcoding; Base Sequence; Bats; Bayes Theorem; Biological taxonomies; Biomes; Blood; Brazil - epidemiology; cerrado; Chiroptera; Chiroptera - classification; Chiroptera - parasitology; DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic; DNA, Protozoan - chemistry; DNA, Ribosomal - chemistry; Ecosystem; Ecosystems; Genetic testing; hosts; Parasite hosts; Parasites; Parasitology; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; polymerase chain reaction; Prevalence; Protozoa; Ribosomal DNA; sampling; SYSTEMATICS-PHYLOGENETICS; Trypanosoma - classification; Trypanosoma - genetics; Trypanosoma - isolation & purification; Trypanosoma cruzi; Trypanosoma dionisii; Trypanosome; Trypanosomiasis - epidemiology; Trypanosomiasis - parasitology; Trypanosomiasis - veterinary; Veterinary medicine; Zoology; Brazil
• ISSN: 0022-3395; 1937-2345
• DOI: 10.1645/12-156.1

In the order Chiroptera, more than 30 trypanosome species belonging to the subgenera Herpetosoma, Schizotrypanum, Megatrypanum, and Trypanozoon have been described. The species Trypanosoma cruzi, Trypanosoma cruzi marinkellei, and Trypanosoma dionisii are the most common in bats and belong to the Schizotrypanum subgenus. Bats from 2 different biomes, Pantanal and Amazonia/Cerrado in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, were evaluated according to the presence of trypanosome parasites by means of hemoculture and PCR in primary samples (blood samples). A total of 211 bats from 20 different species were caught and the trypanosome prevalence, evaluated through hemoculture, was 9.0% (19), 15.5% (13), and 4.8% (6) in the municipalities of Confresa (Amazonia/Cerrado biome) and Poconé (Pantanal biome). Among the 123 primary samples obtained from the bats, only 3 (2.4%) were positive. Phylogenetic analysis using trypanosomatid barcoding (V7V8 region of SSU rDNA) identified all the isolates and primary samples as T. c. marinkellei. The sequences of the isolates were segregated according to the bat host genus or species and suggest that co-evolutionary patterns exist between hosts and parasites. Further studies in different Brazilian regions and biomes need to be conducted in order to gain real understanding of the diversity of trypanosomes in bats.