Lutzomyia longipalpis s.l. in Brazil and the impact of the Sao Francisco River in the speciation of this sand fly vector.

ABSTRACT: Lutzomyia longipalpis s.l. (Diptera: Psychodidae) is the principal vector of Leishmania infantum chagasi in the Americas, and constitutes a complex of species. Various studies have suggested an incipient speciation process based on behavioral isolation driven by the chemotype of male sexual pheromones. It is well known that natural barriers, such as mountains and rivers can directly influence population divergence in several organisms, including insects. In this work we investigated the potential role played by the Sao Francisco River in eastern Brazil in defining the current distribution of Lu. longipalpis s.l. Our studies were based on analyses of polymorphisms of the cytochrome b gene (cyt b) sequences from Lu. longipalpis s.l. available in public databases, and from additional field-ca

SUBMITTER: Coutinho-Abreu IV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2474595 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature