Microsporidian isolates from mosquitoes of Argentina

MICIELI, M. V.; ANDREADIS, T. G.; VOSSBRINCK, CH. R.; BECNEL, J.J.; GARCÍA , J. J

Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires

Simposio; International Congress on Invertebrate Pathology and Microbial Control. 45th Annual Meeting of the Society for Invertebrate Pathology; 2012

Society for Invertebrate Pathology

Microsporidian isolates from mosquitoes of Argentina. María Victoria Micieli,1 Theodore G. Andreadis2, Charles R. Vossbrinck2, James J. Becnel, Juan José García1 1 Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectores, CEPAVE (CONICET-CCT La Plata-UNLP)-, calle 2 N° 584, (1900) La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina. 2Center for Vector Biology & Zoonotic Diseases, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 123 Huntington Street, New Haven, CT 06511, USA. Address for correspondence: victoria@cepave.edu.ar 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 conductedat the Laboratory of Insect Vectorsof 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 remainunder consideration. The complete life cycleincluding the phase in the adult mosquito, the larvaand 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.   Presentation type: Symposium of the Microsporidia Division: "Microsporidia from South America". Division: Microsporidia