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Published on: January 27, 2019
First Identification of Naturally Infected Paratriatoma hirsuta: A Vector for Trypanosoma cruzi and Implications for
Paul A Lenhart1,2, Walter Roachell1, Robert Fathke3
1Entomological Sciences Division, Public Health Command, San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Abstract:
The first detection of Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi) in wild-caught Paratriatoma hirsuta (P. hirsuta) from military installations near the United States/Mexico border in California and Arizona is reported in the present study. As part of a Chagas disease surveillance initiative, 20 adult and 63 immature P. hirsuta were collected from 16 wood rat nests, along with sympatric Triatoma rubida (T. rubida). Initial polymerase chain reaction (PCR) screening revealed presumptive T. cruzi-positive samples, which were reanalyzed using a novel kinetoplast PCR assay with validated targets. Amplicons were sequenced using Sanger analysis, confirming T. cruzi infection. The presence of T. cruzi was confirmed in P. hirsuta (9%) and T. rubida (7%). The present study highlights the potential role of P. hirsuta as a secondary vector in sylvatic zoonotic T. cruzi transmission cycles in the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts and how this informs Chagas disease surveillance and prevention in the region.
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