Triatoma sanguisugaBlood Meals and Potential for Chagas Disease, Louisiana, USA

Abstract

To evaluate human risk for Chagas disease, we molecularly identified blood meal sources and prevalence of Trypanosoma cruzi infection among 49 Triatoma sanguisuga kissing bugs in Louisiana, USA. Humans accounted for the second most frequent blood source. Of the bugs that fed on humans, ≈40% were infected with T. cruzi, revealing transmission potential.

Peer Review #1 of "Sylvatic host associations of Triatominae and implications for Chagas disease reservoirs: a review and new host records based on archival specimens (v0.2)"

“…We limited the inclusion of host records to evolutionarily relevant host species by excluding laboratory results or host associations of exclusively domestic animals such as dogs, chickens or other farmed animals due to the unnatural and recent modern presence of these hosts. We did not see evidence of double peaks in our chromatographs and direct sequencing 293 always resulted in a single, uncontroversial host sequence, similar to results from other studies 294 conducted using similar primers [52], but in contrast to other studies where cloning of the PCR 295 product was performed and as many as four hosts were detected from a single specimen [53].…”

“…Rhodnius pictipes (n=4) and Panstrongylus rufotuberculatus (n=3), respectively. These results represent fewer human records than some similar DNA-based studies (48.8% in [53]; 38% in [36]), which may reflect the sylvatic nature of most of our collecting sites and, potentially, the rigorous sterilization protocol we utilized. Because we did not obtain any sequences from marsupials or armadillos, it is possible that the Kitano 12S primers do not amplify 12S sequences from these hosts.…”

Sylvatic host associations of Triatominae and implications for Chagas disease reservoirs: a comprehensive review and new host records based on archival specimens

“…We did not see evidence of double peaks in our chromatographs and direct sequencing 266 always resulted in a single, uncontroversial host sequence, similar to results from other studies 267 conducted using similar primers [49], but in contrast to other studies where cloning of the PCR 268 product was performed and as many as four hosts were detected from a single specimen [50]. 269…”

“…The archival nature of our specimens may have contributed towards the lack of detection of represented mainly animals present in a sylvatic environment with the exception of three records of the domestic dog from T. protracta (n = 17) specimens collected in Southern California in residential areas, one record of a deer mouse detected from T. pallidipennis (n= 1) at a residence in Mexico and two records of humans from sylvatic areas in Ecuador and Bolivia from Rhodnius pictipes (n=4) and Panstrongylus rufotuberculatus (n=3), respectively. These results represent fewer human records than some similar DNA-based studies (48.8% in [50]; 38% in [34]), which may reflect the sylvatic nature of most of our collecting sites and, potentially, the rigorous sterilization protocol we utilized. Because we did not obtain any sequences from marsupials or armadillos, it is possible that the Kitano 12S primers do not amplify 12S sequences from these hosts.…”

Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Texas hunters: a potentially high-risk population for exposure to the parasite that causes Chagas disease

“…Dogs are important in peri-domestic settings, particularly if they serve as a bloodmeal source for sylvatic vectors and subsequently as a potential reservoir for naïve vectors in a domestic setting. Dogs have been identified as bloodmeal sources in 75% of T. cruzi positive Triatomas in Texas and in 66.7% in the neighboring state of Louisiana [ 3 , 18 ]. Additionally, a high prevalence of rural owned hunting dogs in the neighboring state of Oklahoma were T. cruzi positive [ 19 ].…”