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Molecular detection of Wolbachia pipientis in natural populations of mosquito vectors of Dirofilaria immitis from continental Portugal: first detection in Culex theileri

2016; Wiley; Volume: 30; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1111/mve.12179

1365-2915

Verónica Mixão, Ana Marı́a Mendes, Isabel Maurício, Maria Manuela Palmeiro Calado, María Teresa Novo, Silvana Belo, António Paulo Gouveia de Almeida,

Mosquito-borne diseases and control

Abstract Wolbachia pipientis (Rickettsiales: Rickettsiaceae) protects mosquitoes from infections with arboviruses and parasites. However, the effect of its co‐infection on vector competence for Dirofilaria immitis (Spirurida: Onchocercidae) in the wild has not been investigated. This study aimed to screen vectors of D. immitis for w Pip, to characterize these, and to investigate a possible association between the occurrence of W. pipientis and that of the nematode. The presence of W. pipientis was assessed in the five mosquito potential vectors of D. immitis in Portugal. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products were sequenced, and w Pip haplotypes were determined by PCR–restricted fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). Results showed that w Pip was detected in 61.5% of Culex pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae) pools and 6.3% of Culex theileri pools. w Pip 16s rRNA sequences found in Cx. theileri exactly match those from Cx. pipiens , confirming a mosquito origin, rather than a nematode origin, as some specimens were infected with D. immitis . Only w Pip haplotype I was found. No association was found between the presence of w Pip and D. immitis in mosquitoes and hence a role for this endosymbiont in influencing vectorial competence is yet to be identified. This study contributes to understanding of w Pip distribution in mosquito populations and, to the best of the authors' knowledge, is the first report of natural infections by w Pip in Cx. theileri .