Parasite hybridization promotes spreading of endosymbiotic viruses.

ABSTRACT: Viruses are the most abundant biological entities on Earth and play a significant role in the evolution of many organisms and ecosystems. In pathogenic protozoa, the presence of endosymbiotic viruses has been linked to an increased risk of treatment failure and severe clinical outcome. Here, we studied the molecular epidemiology of the zoonotic disease cutaneous leishmaniasis in Peru and Bolivia through a joint evolutionary analysis of Leishmania braziliensis parasites and their endosymbiotic Leishmania RNA virus. We show that parasite populations circulate in isolated pockets of suitable habitat and are associated with single viral lineages that appear in low prevalence. In contrast, groups of hybrid parasites were geographically and ecologically dispersed, and commonly infe

SUBMITTER: Heeren S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10055345 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature