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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Mosquito and Fly Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #281681

Title: Microsporidian isolates from mosquitoes of Argentina

Author
item MICIELI, MARIA - Center For Studies Of Parasites And Vectors, Cepave
item ANDREADIS, THEODORE - Agricultural Experiment Station, Connecticut
item VOSSBRINCK, CHARLES - Agricultural Experiment Station, Connecticut
item Becnel, James
item GARCIA, JUAN - Center For Studies Of Parasites And Vectors, Cepave

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/7/2012
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: n/a

Technical Abstract: Microsporidia are among the most common and widely distributed microbial pathogens associated with mosquitoes in nature. Since 1980 studies of microsporidia in mosquitoes of Argentina were conducted at the Laboratory of Insect Vectors of CEPAVE. Eleven morphologically unique species of microsporidia belonging to the genera Amblyospora (8), Parathelohania (2) and Hazardia milleri were isolated from species of Anopheles, Culex and Ochlerotatus, while eight species still remain under consideration. The complete life cycle including the phase in the adult mosquito, the larva and in the intermediate host has been elucidated in three species of Amblyospora and in one species of Parathelohania. Molecular data on the small subunit of the ribosomal gene of 5 species of Amblyospora were obtained to establish the affinity of these species to other described microsporidia of mosquitoes available from GenBank. SSU rDNA sequences obtained from these 5 species of microsporidia were unique when compared with GenBank entries. Phylogenetic tree constructed by Neighbor Joining analyses yielded high degree of congruence between parasite and host at the generic level. In this analysis A. camposi from Cx. renatoi clusters with other Amblyospora spp. from Culex mosquitoes, while A. albifasciati (Oc. albifasciatus) and A. criniferis (Oc. crinifer) group with other Amblyospora spp. from Aedes/Ochlerotaus mosquitoes. The positions of 2 microsporidia from Psorophora mosquitoes are unresolved. This is consistent with studies with microsporidia from other parts of the world and supports the hypothesis for coevolution between the microsporidia and its host mosquito at the generic level suggesting a degree of host-parasite co-speciation.