title: Amazonian head lice-specific genotypes are putatively pre-Columbian.
abstract: Head and body lice are strict obligate human ectoparasites with three mitochondrial phylotypes (A, B, and C). Using molecular methods for genotyping lice (Cytochrome b and multi-spacer typing), and comparing our results with all the sequences of human lice that were genotyped previously, we assessed the presence of a specific American genotype that most likely predates the Columbian era in head lice collected from Amazonia.
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes: URMITE, Aix Marseille Université, Faculté de Médecine, Marseille, France. amina.boutell@yahoo.fr
authors.forename: Amina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Boutellis
authors.forename: Aurélie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Veracx
authors.forename: Jônatas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Abrahão
authors.forename: Didier
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raoult
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005838:Genotype; D010373:Lice Infestations / Q000469:parasitology*; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000235:genetics; D005810:Multigene Family; D010374:Pediculus / Q000235:genetics*; D058974:Phylogeography; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012536:Scalp Dermatoses / Q000469:parasitology*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D004247:DNA