Abstract
BackgroundThere have been reported cases of host-switching in avian and lizard species of Plasmodium (Apicomplexa, Haemosporidia), as well as in those infecting different primate species. However, no evidence has previously been found for host-swapping between wild birds and mammals.MethodsThis paper presents the results of the sampling of blood parasites of wild-captured bats from Madagascar and Cambodia. The presence of Haemosporidia infection in these animals is confirmed and cytochrome b gene sequences were used to construct a phylogenetic analysis.ResultsResults reveal at least three different and independent Haemosporidia evolutionary histories in three different bat lineages from Madagascar and Cambodia.ConclusionPhylogenetic analysis strongly suggests multiple host-switching of Haemosporidia parasites in bats with those from avian and primate hosts.
Highlights
There have been reported cases of host-switching in avian and lizard species of Plasmodium (Apicomplexa, Haemosporidia), as well as in those infecting different primate species
The results show the existence of two clades within Haemosporidia, separating mammal and sauropsid hosts (1.00 Bayesian posterior probabilities, 99 and 100 for Maximum Likelihood (ML) and P respectively bootstrap support)
The introduction of the 7 new genetic sequences from chiropteran hemoparasites does not alter the deep branching of P. falciparum within the mammalian clade [4,17]
Summary
There have been reported cases of host-switching in avian and lizard species of Plasmodium (Apicomplexa, Haemosporidia), as well as in those infecting different primate species. Plasmodium falciparum (Apicomplexa, Haemosporidia), the most dangerous of human malaria parasites, is responsible for at least one million deaths a year [1]. Malaria Journal 2007, 6:157 http://www.malariajournal.com/content/6/1/157 mals [4]. These parasites are known to be virulent, invasive pathogens in a variety of wild animals and contribute to the parasite burden of natural populations, including several threatened species [5]. Host switching by these parasites could be the trigger for emerging virulent diseases [6,7,8]
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