Abstract
Trypanosomes are a group of parasitic flagellates with medical and veterinary importance. Despite many species having been described in this genus, little is known about many of them. Here, we report a genetic and morphological characterization of trypanosomatids isolated from wild mammals from the Argentine Chaco region. Parasites were morphologically and ultrastructurally characterized by light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Additionally, 18s rRNA and gGAPDH genes were sequenced and analyzed using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference. Morphological characterization showed clear characteristics associated with the Trypanosoma genus. The genetic characterization demonstrates that the studied isolates have identical sequences and a pairwise identity of 99% with Trypanosoma lainsoni, which belongs to the clade of lizards and snakes/rodents and marsupials. To date, this species had only been found in the Amazon region. Our finding represents the second report of T. lainsoni and the first record for the Chaco region. Furthermore, we ultrastructurally described for the first time the species. Finally, the host range of T. lainsoni was expanded (Leopardus geoffroyi, Carenivora, Felidae; and Calomys sp., Rodentia, Cricetidae), showing a wide host range for this species.
Highlights
Trypanosomatids are unicellular parasites characterized by a single flagellum
We described a a new genotype of T. lainsoni obtained from a Leopardus geoffroyi (Carnivora, Felidae) and from two new genotype of T. lainsoni obtained from a Leopardus geoffroyi (Carnivora, Felidae) and from two rodents by analyzing the rDNA and glycosomal glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase (gGAPDH) genes
Light microscopic observations of in vitro cultures showed that the three isolates were morphologically compatible with trypanosomatids
Summary
Trypanosomatids are unicellular parasites characterized by a single flagellum This family belongs to the class Kinetoplastea, named for the presence of a large mitochondrion with numerous copies of circular DNA, organized in a compact structure called kinetoplast [1]. This class is composed of 12 parasitic genera with numerous species that can each parasitize either vertebrates, invertebrates, or even some plants [2,3,4]. Trypanosoma is a monophyletic group that infects all classes of vertebrate hosts [5,6,7], shows different morphological types during their dixenous life cycles, and are transmitted by blood-sucking invertebrates [8,9]. An example is the phylogenetic group of trypanosomes of Pathogens 2020, 9, 731; doi:10.3390/pathogens9090731 www.mdpi.com/journal/pathogens
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