Novel piroplasmid and Hepatozoon organisms infecting the wildlife of two regions of the Brazilian Amazon

Abstract

During 2009-2012, wild animals were sampled in two areas within the Amazon biome of Brazil, in the states of Mato Grosso and Pará. Animal tissues and blood were molecularly tested for the presence of Piroplasmida (genera <i>Babesia, Theileria, Cytauxzoon</i>) or <i>Hepatozoon</i> DNA. Overall, 181 wild animals comprising 36 different species (2 reptiles, 5 birds, and 29 mammals) were sampled. The following Piroplasmida agents were detected: <i>Cytauxzoon felis</i> in one ocelot (<i>Leopardus pardalis</i>), <i>Theileria cervi</i> in two red brocket deer (<i>Mazama americana</i>), <i>Theileria</i> spp. in three nine-banded-armadillos (<i>Dasypus novemcinctus</i>), one agouti (<i>Dasyprocta</i> sp.), and four lowland pacas (<i>Cuniculus paca</i>), <i>Babesia</i> spp. in one common opossum (<i>Didelphis marsupialis</i>) and one white-lipped peccary (<i>Tayassu pecari</i>). The following <i>Hepatozoon</i> agents were detected: <i>Hepatozoon</i> sp. (possibly <i>Hepatozoon caimani</i>) in three spectacled caimans (<i>Caiman crocodilus</i>), <i>Hepatozoon felis</i> in an ocelot (<i>Leopardus pardalis</i>), and <i>Hepatozoon</i> spp. in one scorpion mud turtle (<i>Kinosternon scorpioides</i>) and one lowland paca (<i>Cuniculus paca</i>). Phylogenetic analyses inferred by the 18S rRNA gene partial sequences supported these results, highlighting at least five novel Piroplasmida agents, and two novel <i>Hepatozoon</i> agents. This study screened the presence of tick-borne protozoa in a number of wildlife species from the Amazon for the first time. Our results indicate that a variety of genetically distinct Piroplasmida and <i>Hepatozoon</i> organisms circulate under natural conditions in the Amazonian wildlife.