Abstract
Within the sand fly genus Lutzomyia, the Verrucarum species group contains several of the principal vectors of American cutaneous leishmaniasis and human bartonellosis in the Andean region of South America. The group encompasses 40 species for which the taxonomic status, phylogenetic relationships, and role of each species in disease transmission remain unresolved. Mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) phylogenetic analysis of a 667-bp fragment supported the morphological classification of the Verrucarum group into series. Genetic sequences from seven species were grouped in well-supported monophyletic lineages. Four species, however, clustered in two paraphyletic lineages that indicate conspecificity—the Lutzomyia longiflocosa–Lutzomyia sauroida pair and the Lutzomyia quasitownsendi–Lutzomyia torvida pair. COI sequences were also evaluated as a taxonomic tool based on interspecific genetic variability within the Verrucarum group and the intraspecific variability of one of its members, Lutzomyia verrucarum, across its known distribution.
Highlights
The New World sand fly genus Lutzomyia (Diptera: Psychodidae) encompasses approximately 391 species morphologically subdivided in subgenera and species groups.[1,2] In northwestern South America, along the Andean mountain range, the Verrucarum species group includes eight of the principal sand fly vectors of American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) and bartonellosis.[1]The Verrucarum group consists of 40 species classified into three unranked series, Serrana, Townsendi, and Verrucarum, based on the phenotypic characteristics of the style and spines of the male genitalia
Between 2006 and 2008, 11 species of sand flies were collected in Peru and Colombia using standard white-light Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) traps as well as the light emitting diode (LED)-modified CDC traps described by Cohnstaedt and others[15] (Figure 1)
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) conditions consisted of an initial denaturation at 95°C for 4 minutes followed by 20 cycles of denaturation (95°C) for 30 seconds, annealing (55–0.3°C/cycle) for 30 seconds, and elongation (70oC) for Eleven species from three series were recovered from the Peru–Colombia collections
Summary
The Verrucarum group consists of 40 species classified into three unranked series, Serrana, Townsendi, and Verrucarum (sensu Young and Duncan1), based on the phenotypic characteristics of the style and spines of the male genitalia. The Verrucarum series is characterized by two medial and two distal spines, the Serrana series is characterized by two distal spines and a slender medial spine, and the Townsendi series is characterized by three distal spines and an isolated basal spine.[3] The females of the group are morphologically similar and difficult to identify reliably. A revision by Galati[4] reorganized the group into seven series (Monticola, Pacae, Pia, Evansi, Verrucarum, Serrana, and Townsendi) based on a morphometric analysis of 88 morphological characters (two to six states per character)
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