Abstract
Parasites of the haemosporidian genus Polychromophilus have exclusively been described in bats. These parasites belong to the diverse group of malaria parasites, and Polychromophilus presents the only haemosporidian taxon that infects mammalian hosts in tropical as well as in temperate climate zones. This study provides the first information of Polychromophilus parasites in the lesser Asiatic yellow bat (Scotophilus kuhlii) in Thailand, a common vespertilionid bat species distributed in South and Southeast Asia. The gametocyte blood stages of the parasites could not be assigned to a described morphospecies and molecular analysis revealed that these parasites might represent a distinct Polychromophilus species. In contrast to Plasmodium species, Polychromophilus parasites do not multiply in red blood cells and, thus, do not cause the clinical symptoms of malaria. Parasitological and molecular investigation of haemosporidian parasites of wildlife, such as the neglected genus Polychromophilus, will contribute to a better understanding of the evolution of malaria parasites.
Highlights
Malaria parasites infect birds, squamates, chelonians and several groups of mammals, including humans, and are transmitted by different groups of haematophagous dipterans (Garnham, 1966)
The remaining two morphospecies have not been included in phylogenetic analyses yet, Polychromophilus sequences sampled from the African Miniopterus host species of P. corradetti and P. adami grouped within the P. melanipherus clade (Duval et al, 2012; Rosskopf et al, 2019)
The blood stages of Polychromophilus parasites are limited to gametocytes and the morphology corresponds to the description of Polychromophilus parasites of vespertilionid hosts
Summary
Malaria parasites (order Haemosporida) infect birds, squamates, chelonians and several groups of mammals, including humans, and are transmitted by different groups of haematophagous dipterans (Garnham, 1966). The human-infecting parasite species belong to the genus Plasmodium, which is only one out of at least 15 genera that together comprise over 500 haemosporidian species. Parasites of this diverse group differ in host specificities, adaptations and their life cycles (Garnham, 1966). The remaining two morphospecies have not been included in phylogenetic analyses yet, Polychromophilus sequences sampled from the African Miniopterus host species of P. corradetti and P. adami grouped within the P. melanipherus clade (Duval et al, 2012; Rosskopf et al, 2019)
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