Extraordinary Trypanosoma cruzi diversity within single mammalian reservoir hosts implies a mechanism of diversifying selection.

ABSTRACT: Trypanosoma cruzi is an evolutionarily ancient parasitic protozoan endemic to the Americas. Multiple genetic and phenotypic markers indicate that this parasite is highly diverse, with several divergent and discrete major genotypes reported. Infection multiclonality has been observed among numerous metazoan and unicellular endoparasitic species. However, few studies report the complexity of mixed infections within an individual host in any detail or consider their ecological and biological implications. Here we report extraordinary genetic diversity within single reservoir hosts of T. cruzi I using nine polymorphic microsatellite markers across 211 clones from eight mammals from three different sylvatic foci in South America. Forty-nine distinct multilocus genotypes were defined, with as ma

SUBMITTER: Llewellyn MS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3084450 | biostudies-literature | 2011 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature