Sequence variation of the Cytochrome b gene of various human infecting members of the genus Leishmania and their phylogeny

Abstract

S U M M A R YThe Cytochrome b (Cyt b) gene has proved to be useful for identification and classification of many mammals and plants. In order to evaluate the utility of this gene for discrimination of Leishmania parasites as well as for exploring their phylogenetic relationships, we determined the nucleotide sequences of the Cyt b gene from 13 human-infecting Leishmania species (14 strains) from the New and Old Worlds. The Cyt b genes, approximately 1080 base pairs, were found to be A/T rich, and their 5k terminal-editing regions were highly conserved. The nucleotide sequence variation among them was enough to discriminate parasite species; 245 nucleotide positions were polymorphic and 190 positions were parsimony informative. The phylogenetic relationships based on this gene, showed good agreement with the classification of Lainson & Shaw (1987) ) tropica complex and the placement of L. tarentolae in another genus. These data show that the Cyt b gene is useful for phylogenetic study of Leishmania parasites.

Leishmania species identification using FTA card sampling directly from patients’ cutaneous lesions in the state of Lara, Venezuela

“…For the classification of Leishmania species, several genetic markers have been studied. 15,17,[25][26][27][28][29][30][31] FTA cards were recently used for the less invasive dry collection of specimens from patients with CL. reported as a principal pathogen in this endemic area.…”

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

“…L. major-like parasite had also been reported from Brazil, Paraguay, Venezuela, and Mexico (Cupolillo et al 1994, Yamasaki et al 1994 suggesting that some of these populations may have been imported into the Americas (Momen et al 1993). The nucleotide sequences of cytochrome b of L. major-like isolated from the Ecuadorian Andes and the WHO reference strain L. major had a 99.9% homology (Luyo-Acero et al 2004).…”

Are Cytochrome B Gene Sequencing and Polymorphism-Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction as Reliable as Multilocus Enzyme Electrophoresis for Identifying Leishmania Spp. From Argentina?

“…The cyt b gene sequences for each sample were determined following the procedure described previously. 15,19 Briefly, the amplified fragments, obtained as was described previously, were electrophoresed on 1% Seakam GTG agarose gel (FMC, USA), excised, and then purified by using the QIA quick Gel Extraction kit (Qiagen, USA). The purified DNA was examined by direct sequencing with the Big Dye Terminator Cycle Sequencing kit (PE Biosystems, USA) and ABI PRISM TM 310 Genetic Analyzer.…”

“…One of them, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and sequencing of cytochrome b gene method (cyt b gene sequencing) has recently been established as a useful tool for the identification and phylogenetic studies of the Leishmania genus, being able to differentiate among the species and from other trypanosomatids. 15 Another of these techniques, the polymorphism-specific PCR (PS-PCR), has been used for the Leishmania spp. identification based on the presence of bands amplified for subgenus or species-specific primers, without requiring other procedures.…”