Molecular tools confirm natural Leishmania (Viannia) guyanensis/L. (V.) shawi hybrids causing cutaneous leishmaniasis in the Amazon region of Brazil

Author(s)

Lima, Ana Carolina S. ^{[1, 2]} ; Gomes, Claudia Maria C. ^[1] ; Tomokane, Thaise Y. ^[1] ; Campos, Marliane Batista ^[2] ; Zampieri, Ricardo A. ^[3] ; Jorge, Carolina L. ^[3] ; Laurenti, Marcia D. ^[1] ; Silveira, Fernando T. ^[2] ; Corbett, Carlos Eduardo P. ^[1] ; Floeter-Winter, Lucile Maria ^[3]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Med, Dept DePatol, Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[2] Inst Evandro Chagas, Secretaria Vigilancia Saude, Minist Saude, Belem, Para - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Biociencias, Dept Fisiol, Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: GENETICS AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY; v. 44, n. 2 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Abstract Seven isolates from patients with American cutaneous leishmaniasis in the Amazon region of Brazil were phenotypically suggestive of Leishmania (Viannia) guyanensis/L. (V.) shawi hybrids. In this work, two molecular targets were employed to check the hybrid identity of the putative hybrids. Heat shock protein 70 (hsp70) gene sequences were analyzed by three different polymerase chain reaction (PCR) approaches, and two different patterns of inherited hsp70 alleles were found. Three isolates presented heterozygous L. (V.) guyanensis/L. (V.) shawi patterns, and four presented homozygous hsp70 patterns involving only L. (V.) shawi alleles. The amplicon sequences confirmed the RFLP patterns. The high-resolution melting method detected variant heterozygous and homozygous profiles. Single-nucleotide polymorphism genotyping/cleaved amplified polymorphic site analysis suggested a higher contribution from L. (V.) guyanensis in hsp70 heterozygous hybrids. Additionally, PCR-RFLP analysis targeting the enzyme mannose phosphate isomerase (mpi) gene indicated heterozygous and homozygous cleavage patterns for L. (V.) shawi and L. (V.) guyanensis, corroborating the hsp70 findings. In this communication, we present molecular findings based on partial informative regions of the coding sequences of hsp70 and mpi as markers confirming that some of the parasite strains from the Brazilian Amazon region are indeed hybrids between L. (V.) guyanensis and L. (V.) shawi. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 14/50315-0 - Leishmaniasis in Latin America: an advanced perspective on immunopathogenetic factors of cutaneous and visceral infection, immunomodulators of the sandflies vector saliva and immunogenic exo-antigens of Leishmania (L.) infantum chagasi as vaccine candidates
• Grantee: Marcia Dalastra Laurenti
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 12/08338-8 - Biological and Molecular Characterization of strains of Leishmania sp. isolated from patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis from the Amazon Region, Santarem, PA, Brazil.
• Grantee: Ana Carolina Stocco de Lima
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate