title: Intraspecific variation of second internal transcribed spacer of nuclear ribosomal DNA among populations of Anopheles (Kerteszia) cruzii (Diptera: Culicidae).
abstract: Anopheline species of the subgenus Kerteszia, including Anopheles (Kerteszia) cruzii Dyar & Knab (Diptera: Culicidae), are bromeliad-malaria vectors in the Atlantic rain forest of Brazil. Morphological, genetic, and molecular polymorphisms among different populations of An. cruzii have been reported, and it has been suggested that this taxon includes a complex of cryptic species. Specimens of An. cruzii were collected in the states of SHo Paulo and Santa Catarina, from locations where autochthonous malaria cases have been reported during the last decade. The second internal transcribed spacers (ITS2) of nuclear ribosomal DNA of the captured specimens were sequenced and compared with each other. Intraspecific ITS2 sequence polymorphisms were identified, and nucleotide divergence among specimens varied from 0.3 to 0.9%. The number of nucleotides in the ITS2 sequences of these mosquitoes varied from 327 to 334, and the CG contents varied from 61.7 to 62%. The data provide further indication of An. cruzii being a complex of cryptic species.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Dr. Enéas de Carvalho Aguiar, 470, 05403-000, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. rmalafronte@usp.br
authors.forename: Rosely Dos S
authors.initials: Rdos S
authors.lastname: Malafronte
authors.forename: Mauro T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Marrelli
authors.forename: Corália C L
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Ramirez
authors.forename: Maíra N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Nassar
authors.forename: Osvaldo
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Marinotti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D001938:Brazil; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer / Q000235:genetics*; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific / Q000378:metabolism; D014644:Genetic Variation; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016415:Sequence Alignment
chemical_list: D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer; C055654:endodeoxyribonuclease NruI; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific