scholarly journals Records of Three Mammal Tick Species Parasitizing an a typical Host, the Multi-ocellated Racerunner, in Arid Regions of Xinjiang, China

Author(s):  
Qi Zhou ◽  
Jiao Li ◽  
Xianguang Guo ◽  
Jinlong Liu ◽  
Qi Song ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: To better simulate and predict zoonotic disease outbreaks, data on arthropods acting as pathogen carriers and information on host-arthropod associations should be collected. Ticks are obligate haematophagous ectoparasites of vertebrate animals, including humans, with a wide global distribution. To date, the species discrimination and phylogenetic relationships among the ticks on lizards in China remain unclear. Methods: In this study, 31 ticks, collected from Eremias multiocellata lizards in four arid desert regions of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in China, were identified by morphological observation and molecular techniques. The 12S rDNA, 16S rDNA, and COI fragments of ticks were sequenced. As reference samples, 47 Chinese ticks from hedgehogs and one tick from brushwood were also included in this study. To infer the phylogenetic relationships among them, 32 12S rDNA, 77 16S rDNA, and 66 COI sequences of ticks retrieved from GenBank were also included. All samples were identified by phylogenetic analyses. Results: The Bayesian and network analysis results revealed that the 31 ticks from the lizards belong to three genera and three species: 11 were identified as Hyalomma asiaticum, three as Rhipicephalus turanicus, and 17 as Haemaphysalis sulcata. Conclusions: Our study is the first attempt to investigate ticks on lizards in the arid desert regions of Xinjiang, China. Notably, two species of ticks have been identified on lizards in China for the first time. The discoveries in this study are closely related to the geographical environment in Xinjiang, and should provide important information for the control of ticks and tick-borne pathogens in northern China.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi Zhou ◽  
Jiao Li ◽  
Xianguang Guo ◽  
Jinlong Liu ◽  
Qi Song ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Ticks are obligate hematophagous ectoparasites of vertebrate animals including human with wide distribution over the world, which are vectors of some human diseases. To date, the species discrimination and phylogenetic relationships among ticks on lizards in China are still unclear. The morphological method is not sufficient for identification of damaged, engorged or immature specimens by the loss of morphological criteria or by the lack of morphological criteria. So, Molecular technique was applied tothis study. Methods In this study, the 12S, 16S rDNA and COI fragments of 31 ticks collected from Eremias multiocellata-lizard from 4 arid desert regions of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous regions in China, were sequenced. 47 Chinese ticks from hedgehog and 1 tick from brushwood were included in this study as reference sample. To infer the phylogenetic relationships among them, 66 12S rDNA, 104 16S rDNA and 85 COI sequences of ticks retrieved from GenBank were also included. All samples identified with phylogenetic and network analyses. Results The three Bayesian analyses results (12S, 16S rDNA and COI fragments ) are consistent. They revealed that the 31 ticks from lizards belong to 3 genus and 3 species: 11 were identified as Hyalomma asiaticum, 3 as Rhipicephalus turanicus and 17 ticks belong to Haemaphysalis sulcata. Our results also indicated that the collected ticks from hedgehog were identified as Hyalomma asiaticum (38) and Rhipicephalus turanicus (9), the tick from brushwood was identified as Hyalomma asiaticum. All of these ticks collected from lizard were in small size ranged from 1 to 2 mm. Besides, some of these ticks share the same genotype with their counterparts in neighboring countries. The characteristics of ticks found in this study in Xinjiang may be closely related to the geographical environment. Conclusions Our study is the first attempt to investigate the ticks on lizards from the arid desert regions of Xinjiang in China, all of the discoveries on ticks in this study is closely related to the geographical environment in Xinjiang. which would provide more information to the control of ticks and tick-borne pathogens in the northern China.


IMA Fungus ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takamichi Orihara ◽  
Rosanne Healy ◽  
Adriana Corrales ◽  
Matthew E. Smith

ABSTRACTAmong many convergently evolved sequestrate fungal genera in Boletaceae (Boletales, Basidiomycota), the genus Octaviania is the most diverse. We recently collected many specimens of Octaviania subg. Octaviania, including several undescribed taxa, from Japan and the Americas. Here we describe two new species in subgenus Octaviania, O. tenuipes and O. tomentosa, from temperate to subtropical evergreen Fagaceae forests in Japan based on morphological observation and robust multilocus phylogenetic analyses (nrDNA ITS and partial large subunit [LSU], translation elongation factor 1-α gene [TEF1] and the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II gene [RPB1]). Based on specimens from the Americas as well as studies of the holotype, we also taxonomically re-evaluate O. asterosperma var. potteri. Our analysis suggests that O. asterosperma var. potteri is a distinct taxon within the subgenus Octaviania so we recognize this as O. potteri stat. nov. We unexpectedly collected O. potteri specimens from geographically widespread sites in the USA, Japan and Colombia. This is the first verified report of Octaviania from the South American continent. Our molecular analyses also revealed that the RPB1 sequence of one O. tenuipes specimen was identical to that of a closely related species, O. japonimontana, and that one O. potteri specimen from Minnesota had an RPB1 sequence of an unknown species of O. subg. Octaviania. Additionally, one O. japonimontana specimen had an unusually divergent TEF1 sequence. Gene-tree comparison and phylogenetic network analysis of the multilocus dataset suggest that these heterogenous sequences are most likely the result of previous inter- and intra-specific hybridization. We hypothesize that frequent hybridization events in Octaviania may have promoted the high genetic and species diversity found within the genus.


Zootaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4952 (2) ◽  
pp. 331-353
Author(s):  
CHAO YANG ◽  
LE ZHAO ◽  
QINGXIONG WANG ◽  
HAO YUAN ◽  
XUEJUAN LI ◽  
...  

To gain a better understanding of mitogenome features and phylogenetic relationships in Sylvioidea, a superfamily of Passerida, suborder Passeri, Passeriformes, the whole mitogenome of Alaudala cheleensis Swinhoe (Alaudidae) was sequenced, a comparative mitogenomic analysis of 18 Sylvioidea species was carried out, and finally, a phylogeny was reconstructed based on the mitochondrial dataset. Gene order of the A. cheleensis mitogenome was similar to that of other Sylvioidea species, including the gene rearrangement of cytb-trnT-CR1-trnP-nad6-trnE-remnant CR2-trnF-rrnS. There was slightly higher A+T content than that of G+C in the mitogenome, with an obvious C skew. The ATG codon initiated all protein-coding genes, while six terminating codons were used. The secondary structure of rrnS contained three domains and 47 helices, whereas rrnL included six domains and 60 helices. All tRNAs could be folded into a classic clover-leaf secondary structure except for trnS (AGY). The CR1 could be divided into three domains, including several conserved boxes (C-string, F, E, D, C and B-box, Bird similarity box, CSB1). Comparative analyses within Sylvioidea mitogenomes showed that most mitochondrial features were consistent with that of the A. cheleensis mitogenome. The basal position of the Alaudidae within the Sylvioidea in our phylogenetic analyses is consistent with other recent studies. 


Toxins ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vesna Krnjaja ◽  
Slavica Stanković ◽  
Ana Obradović ◽  
Tanja Petrović ◽  
Violeta Mandić ◽  
...  

Fusarium graminearum as the main causal agent of Fusarium head blight (FHB) and its ability to produce trichothecenes was investigated by molecular techniques. A total of 37 strains isolated from the wheat, harvested in Serbia in 2005, 2008 and 2015, and previously designated by morphological observation as F. graminearum, were used for trichothecene genotypes characterization. The strains were identified using the species-specific primer set FG16R/FG16F while genotypic characterization was done using specific TRI13 and TRI3 sequences of the trichothecene gene clusters. The PCR assays identified all strains as species of F. graminearum sensu stricto with the DON/15-ADON genotype. The quantification of the mycotoxin (DON) was performed using the biochemical assay. The high levels of DON (>20,000 µg kg−1) were recorded in all of the strains from 2005, four strains from 2008 and two strains from 2015. Weather data of the investigated seasons, showed that the optimal temperature, frequent rains and high relative humidity (RH) was very favourable for the development of F. graminearum, affecting the DON biosynthesis.


Mammalia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. 180-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam W. Ferguson ◽  
Houssein R. Roble ◽  
Molly M. McDonough

AbstractThe molecular phylogeny of extant genets (Carnivora, Viverridae,Genetta) was generated using all species with the exception of the Ethiopian genetGenetta abyssinica. Herein, we provide the first molecular phylogenetic assessment ofG. abyssinicausing molecular sequence data from multiple mitochondrial genes generated from a recent record of this species from the Forêt du Day (the Day Forest) in Djibouti. This record represents the first verified museum specimen ofG. abyssinicacollected in over 60 years and the first specimen with a specific locality for the country of Djibouti. Multiple phylogenetic analyses revealed conflicting results as to the exact relationship ofG. abyssinicato otherGenettaspecies, providing statistical support for a sister relationship to all other extant genets for only a subset of mitochondrial analyses. Despite the inclusion of this species for the first time, phylogenetic relationships amongGenettaspecies remain unclear, with limited nodal support for many species. In addition to providing an alternative hypothesis of the phylogenetic relationships among extant genets, this recent record provides the first complete skeleton of this species to our knowledge and helps to shed light on the distribution and habitat use of this understudied African small carnivore.


2017 ◽  
Vol 145 (9) ◽  
pp. 1886-1897 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. K. KYAW ◽  
M. M. NGWE TUN ◽  
M. L. MOI ◽  
T. NABESHIMA ◽  
K. T. SOE ◽  
...  

SUMMARYHospital-based surveillance was conducted at two widely separated regions in Myanmar during the 2015 dengue epidemic. Acute phase serum samples were collected from 332 clinically diagnosed dengue patients during the peak season of dengue cases. Viremia levels were measured by quantitative real-time PCR and plaque assays using FcγRIIA-expressing and non-FcγRIIA-expressing BHK cells to specifically determine the infectious virus particles. By serology and molecular techniques, 280/332 (84·3%) were confirmed as dengue patients. All four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV) were isolated from among 104 laboratory-confirmed patients including two cases infected with two DENV serotypes. High percentage of primary infection was noted among the severe dengue patients. Patients with primary infection or DENV IgM negative demonstrated significantly higher viral loads but there was no significant difference among the severity groups. Viremia levels among dengue patients were notably high for a long period which was assumed to support the spread of the virus by the mosquito vector during epidemic. Phylogenetic analyses of the envelope gene of the epidemic strains revealed close similarity with the strains previously isolated in Myanmar and neighboring countries. DENV-1 dominated the epidemic in 2015 and the serotype (except DENV-3) and genotype distributions were similar in both study sites.


2003 ◽  
Vol 77 (13) ◽  
pp. 7202-7213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Salemi ◽  
Tulio De Oliveira ◽  
Valerie Courgnaud ◽  
Vincent Moulton ◽  
Barbara Holland ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT To clarify the origin and evolution of the primate lentiviruses (PLVs), which include human immunodeficiency virus types 1 and 2 as well as their simian relatives, simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs), isolated from several host species, we investigated the phylogenetic relationships among the six supposedly nonrecombinant PLV lineages for which the full genome sequences are available. Employing bootscanning as an exploratory tool, we located several regions in the PLV genome that seem to have uncertain or conflicting phylogenetic histories. Phylogeny reconstruction based on distance and maximum-likelihood algorithms followed by a number of statistical tests confirms the existence of at least five putative recombinant fragments in the PLV genome with different clustering patterns. Split decomposition analysis also shows that phylogenetic relationships among PLVs may be better represented by network-based graphs, such as the ones produced by SplitsTree. Our findings not only imply that the six so-called pure PLV lineages have in fact mosaic genomes but also make more unlikely the hypothesis of cospeciation of SIVs and their simian hosts.


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