Isolation and characterization of trypanosomatids, including Crithidia mellificae, in bats from the Atlantic Forest of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Diana Azeredo Rangel,Ricardo Moratelli,Roberto Leonan Morim Novaes,André Luiz Rodrigues Roque,Bruno Alves Silva,Ana Maria Jansen,Cristiane Varella Lisboa,Renan De França Souza

doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0007527

Abstract

We studied infection by Trypanosomatidae in bats captured in two areas with different degradation levels in the Atlantic Forest of Rio de Janeiro state: Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaçu (REGUA) and Estação Fiocruz Mata Atlântica (EFMA). Furthermore, we evaluated whether the diversity of trypanosomatids changes according to bat diversity and the different levels of preservation in the region. The results showed no influence of the level of preservation on bat species richness (15 and 14 species, respectively), with similar chiropterofauna and higher abundance of two common fruit-eating bat species in the tropics: Carollia perspicillata and Artibeus lituratus. Of the 181 bat specimens analyzed by LIT/Schneider hemoculture, we detected 24 infected individuals (13%), including one positive Sturnira lilium individual that was also positive by fresh blood examination. Molecular characterization using nested PCR targeting the 18 SSU rRNA-encoding gene fragment showed similar trypanosomatid infection rates in bats from the two areas: 15% in REGUA and 11% in EFMA (p = 0.46). Trypanosoma dionisii was the most frequently detected parasite (54%), followed by T. cruzi DTUs TcI and TcIV and Trypanosoma sp., in Neotropical phyllostomid bats (RNMO63 and RNMO56); mixed infections by T. dionisii/T. cruzi TcIII and T. dionisii/T. cruzi TcI were also observed. The T. cruzi DTUs TcI and TcIV are the genotypes currently involved in cases of acute Chagas disease in Brazil, and T. dionisii was recently found in the heart tissue of an infected child. Surprisingly, we also describe for the first time Crithidia mellificae, a putative monoxenous parasite from insects, infecting a vertebrate host in the Americas. Bats from the Atlantic Forest of Rio de Janeiro state harbor a great diversity of trypanosomatids, maintaining trypanosomatid diversity in this sylvatic environment.

Highlights

Trypanosomatids (Protozoa: Trypanosomatida: Trypanosomatidae) are parasitic uniflagellated protists that infect plants, invertebrates and vertebrates and have monoxenous or heteroxenous life cycles
To assess whether the diversity of trypanosomatid species in bats is affected by the level of environmental disturbance, we collected blood from bats in two localities of Rio Janeiro state in Brazil: one with high and another with low human interference
Using the 18S RNA gene as a molecular target, we identified 24 bats (13%) infected by trypanosomatids, mostly by T. dionisii, a trypanosome species commonly found in all Brazilian biomes and highly associated with bats

Summary

Introduction

Trypanosomatids (Protozoa: Trypanosomatida: Trypanosomatidae) are parasitic uniflagellated protists that infect plants, invertebrates and vertebrates and have monoxenous or heteroxenous life cycles. The monogenetic trait of these protists is not strict because heteroxenous life cycles have been reported for some, as follows: (i) Leptomonas seymouri observed in coinfections with Leishmania donovani in patients with visceral leishmaniasis [2,3]; (ii) Leptomonas sp. All these findings show that these parasites exhibit an unsuspected adaptability to new environments

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Conclusion