Towards a phylogenetic approach to the composition of species complexes in the North and Central American Triatoma, vectors of Chagas disease.

ABSTRACT: Phylogenetic relationships of insect vectors of parasitic diseases are important for understanding the evolution of epidemiologically relevant traits, and may be useful in vector control. The sub-family Triatominae (Hemiptera:Reduviidae) includes ∼140 extant species arranged in five tribes comprised of 15 genera. The genus Triatoma is the most species-rich and contains important vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease. Triatoma species were grouped into complexes originally by morphology and more recently with the addition of information from molecular phylogenetics (the four-complex hypothesis); however, without a strict adherence to monophyly. To date, the validity of proposed species complexes has not been tested by statistical tests of topology. The goal of

SUBMITTER: de la Rua NM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4096843 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature