Identification of Endotrypanum Species from a Sloth, a Squirrel and Lutzomyia Sandflies in Ecuador by PCR Amplification and Sequencing of the Mini-Exon Gene

Abstract

PCR amplification and nucleotide sequencing of the mini-exon gene revealed that four strains isolated from a sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni), a squirrel (Sciurus granatensis) and two sandflies (Lutzomyia hartmanni) in Ecuador were indistinguishable from Endotrypanum monterogeii. Another strain isolated from Lu. hartmanni showed the high sequence similarity to E. schaudinni. Since three of these strains have been previously identified as Leishmania (Viannia) equatorensis, the results demonstrate that L. (V.) equatorensis is genetically closely related to the genus Endotrypanum. The present study also indicates that Endotrypanum species are distributed in arboreal animals and sandflies in Ecuador, and that mini-exon gene amplification is useful for epidemiological studies of Leishmania and Endotrypanum in the New World.

Epidemiology of leishmaniasis in Ecuador: current status of knowledge - A review

“…The latter species was recently confirmed to harbor Endotrypanum spp. (Uezato et al 2001, Katakura et al 2003, believed before to be L. (V.) equatorensis .…”

“…Parasite isolates from a sloth (Choloepus hoffmani) and a squirrel (Sciurus granatensis) caught in tropical forest of the Pacific region characterized before as L. (V.) equatorensis (Grimaldi et al 1992), actually Uezato et al (2001) and Katakura et al (2003) using molecular methods identified that it belongs to the genus Endotrypanum spp.…”

First human cases of Leishmania (Viannia) naiffi infection in Ecuador and identification of its suspected vector species

“…is not pathogenic to humans (Shaw, 1964;Franco and Grimaldi, 1999;Katakura et al, 2003). In Ecuador, Endotrypanum species have been isolated from Lu.…”

Major Surface Protease of Trypanosomatids: One Size Fits All?

“…The trypanosomatid parasites of the forest-dwelling tree sloths in South America have an unusual intraerythrocytic stage (53,75). As such, the Endotrypanum MSP homologues apparently cannot perform all the same functions as Leishmania MSPs, particularly those involved in Mø entry (for a review, see reference 107).…”

“…(iii) Two species of Endotrypanum are parasites of forest-dwelling tree sloths in South America. Both Endotrypanum schaudinni and Endotrypanum monterogeii have an unusual intraerythrocytic stage (53,75) as trypomastigotes and epimastigotes, respectively, even though both use sand flies as vectors (24). (iv) Phytomonas spp., transmitted between plants by phytophagous insects, infect several plants of great economic importance in widespread geographic regions (13).…”