Biomaterial Database

Trypanosoma cruzi congenital transmission in wild bats. 2009

Néstor Añez, and Gladys Crisante, and Pascual J Soriano

Investigaciones Parasitológicas J.F.Torrealba, Universidad de Los Andes, Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología, Mérida 5101, Venezuela. nanes@ula.ve

Trypanosoma cruzi congenital transmission in wild bats (Molossus molossus), associated with infected Rhodnius prolixus in a natural habitat from a rural locality in western Venezuela, is reported. T. cruzi blood circulating trypomastigotes in a pregnant bat were detected by parasitological methods. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays carried out in samples from the heart and the fetus of the same infected female, revealed the presence of T. cruzi-specific DNA in both of the tissues, demonstrating transmission of the infection from the mother to the offspring. Eighty percent of the captured bats and 100% of the examined fetuses from pregnant specimens were shown to be infected by T. cruzi, indicating that M. molossus is a very susceptible species for this parasite, and that T. cruzi congenital transmission is a common phenomenon in nature. To our knowledge, this seems to be the first report on congenital T. cruzi transmission in wild bats in Venezuela. The circulation of T. cruzi lineage I in the study area was demonstrated by typing the isolates from bats and triatomine bugs captured in the same habitat. The potential epidemiological implication of these findings in areas where Chagas disease is endemic is discussed.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D011247	Pregnancy	The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH.	Gestation,Pregnancies
D002685	Chiroptera	Order of mammals whose members are adapted for flight. It includes bats, flying foxes, and fruit bats.	Bats,Flying Foxes,Horseshoe Bats,Pteropodidae,Pteropus,Rhinolophus,Rousettus,Bat, Horseshoe,Bats, Horseshoe,Foxes, Flying,Horseshoe Bat
D005260	Female		Females
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D014349	Trypanosoma cruzi	The agent of South American trypanosomiasis or CHAGAS DISEASE. Its vertebrate hosts are man and various domestic and wild animals. Insects of several species are vectors.	Trypanosoma cruzus,cruzi, Trypanosoma
D015597	Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic	The co-occurrence of pregnancy and parasitic diseases. The parasitic infection may precede or follow FERTILIZATION.	Parasitic Pregnancy Complications,Complications, Parasitic Pregnancy,Pregnancy, Parasitic Complications,Complication, Parasitic Pregnancy,Complications Pregnancies, Parasitic,Complications Pregnancy, Parasitic,Parasitic Complications Pregnancies,Parasitic Complications Pregnancy,Parasitic Pregnancy Complication,Pregnancies, Parasitic Complications,Pregnancy Complication, Parasitic
D016054	DNA, Protozoan	Deoxyribonucleic acid that makes up the genetic material of protozoa.	Protozoan DNA
D016133	Polymerase Chain Reaction	In vitro method for producing large amounts of specific DNA or RNA fragments of defined length and sequence from small amounts of short oligonucleotide flanking sequences (primers). The essential steps include thermal denaturation of the double-stranded target molecules, annealing of the primers to their complementary sequences, and extension of the annealed primers by enzymatic synthesis with DNA polymerase. The reaction is efficient, specific, and extremely sensitive. Uses for the reaction include disease diagnosis, detection of difficult-to-isolate pathogens, mutation analysis, genetic testing, DNA sequencing, and analyzing evolutionary relationships.	Anchored PCR,Inverse PCR,Nested PCR,PCR,Anchored Polymerase Chain Reaction,Inverse Polymerase Chain Reaction,Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction,PCR, Anchored,PCR, Inverse,PCR, Nested,Polymerase Chain Reactions,Reaction, Polymerase Chain,Reactions, Polymerase Chain
D017422	Sequence Analysis, DNA	A multistage process that includes cloning, physical mapping, subcloning, determination of the DNA SEQUENCE, and information analysis.	DNA Sequence Analysis,Sequence Determination, DNA,Analysis, DNA Sequence,DNA Sequence Determination,DNA Sequence Determinations,DNA Sequencing,Determination, DNA Sequence,Determinations, DNA Sequence,Sequence Determinations, DNA,Analyses, DNA Sequence,DNA Sequence Analyses,Sequence Analyses, DNA,Sequencing, DNA