High frequency of trypanosomatids in gallery forest bats of a Neotropical savanna

Bats are well-known hosts of trypanosomatids, though information about their role as reservoirs of these protozoans in the Brazilian savanna is poorly known. We aimed to analyze the occurrence of trypanosomatid species in bats occurring in remnants of gallery forests of Brasília, Federal District of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta tropica 2018-01, Vol.177, p.200-206
Main Authors: Lourenço, João Lucas M., Minuzzi-Souza, Thaís T.C., Silva, Larissa R., Oliveira, Amanda C., Mendonça, Vagner J., Nitz, Nadjar, Aguiar, Ludmilla M.S., Gurgel-Gonçalves, Rodrigo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Brazil
Brazil - epidemiology
Cerrado
Chagas Disease - parasitology
Chiroptera
Chiroptera - parasitology
Disease Vectors
Grassland
Leishmania-like
Phylogeny
T. dionisii
T. rangeli
Trypanosoma - genetics
Trypanosoma - isolation & purification
Trypanosoma cruzi
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Summary:Bats are well-known hosts of trypanosomatids, though information about their role as reservoirs of these protozoans in the Brazilian savanna is poorly known. We aimed to analyze the occurrence of trypanosomatid species in bats occurring in remnants of gallery forests of Brasília, Federal District of Brazil. We sampled bats using mist nets in six sites, and we collected blood, wing fragments and oral swab samples from all captured individuals. Trypanosomatids were identified in the captured bats through sequencing of the SSUrRNA region and kDNA qPCR. We found no parasite in blood smears of 146 individuals of 14 species captured, but blood cultures were positive for nine bats. We detected trypanosomatids molecularly in 111 (76%) specimens of all bat species in the studied areas. Most of the infected bats had Leishmania-like DNA detected in blood and swab samples of the oral mucosa. We distinguished three species of Trypanosoma (Trypanosoma dionisii, T. rangeli and T. cruzi) in Carollia perspicillata. SSUrRNA PCR of oral samples is a non-invasive and practical method for identification of trypanosomatid species in bats. Our results support our belief that bats could be potential reservoirs for Trypanosoma and Leishmania-like species in the enzootic cycle of these parasites in gallery forests of the Brazilian Cerrado biome.
ISSN:0001-706X
1873-6254
DOI:10.1016/j.actatropica.2017.10.012