title: Molecular detection of Leishmania DNA and identification of blood meals in wild caught phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) from southern Portugal.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania infantum which is transmitted by phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera, Psychodidae) is endemic in the Mediterranean basin. The main objectives of this study were to (i) detect Leishmania DNA and (ii) identify blood meal sources in wild caught female sand flies in the zoonotic leishmaniasis region of Algarve, Portugal/Southwestern Europe.
  
  
  METHODS
  Phlebotomine sand flies were collected using CDC miniature light traps and sticky papers. Sand flies were identified morphologically and tested for Leishmania sp. by PCR using ITS-1 as the target sequence. The source of blood meal of the engorged females was determined using the cyt-b sequence.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Out of the 4,971 (2,584 males and 2,387 females) collected sand flies, Leishmania DNA was detected by PCR in three females (0.13%), specifically in two specimens identified on the basis of morphological features as Sergentomyia minuta and one as Phlebotomus perniciosus. Haematic preferences, as defined by the analysis of cyt-b DNA amplified from the blood-meals detected in the engorged female specimens, showed that P. perniciosus fed on a wide range of domestic animals while human and lizard DNA was detected in engorged S. minuta.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The anthropophilic behavior of S. minuta together with the detection of Leishmania DNA highlights the need to determine the role played by this species in the transmission of Leishmania parasites to humans. In addition, on-going surveillance on Leishmania vectors is crucial as the increased migration and travelling flow elevate the risk of introduction and spread of infections by Leishmania species which are non-endemic.
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Parasitologia Médica, Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (UNL), Lisbon, Portugal. carlamaia@ihmt.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Maia
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Parasitologia Médica, Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (UNL), Lisbon, Portugal. ricardo@ihmt.unl.pt.|Unidade de Microbiologia Médica, GHTM, IHMT-UNL, Lisbon, Portugal. ricardo@ihmt.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Parreira
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Parasitologia Médica, Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (UNL), Lisbon, Portugal. jcristovao@ihmt.unl.pt.
authors.forename: José Manuel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Cristóvão
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Parasitologia Médica, Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (UNL), Lisbon, Portugal. ferdinandocar@sapo.pt.
authors.forename: Ferdinando Bernardino
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Freitas
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Parasitologia Médica, Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (UNL), Lisbon, Portugal. odeteafonso@ihmt.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Maria Odete
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Afonso
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Parasitologia Médica, Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM), Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical (IHMT), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (UNL), Lisbon, Portugal. lcampino@ihmt.unl.pt.|Departamento de Ciências Biomédicas e Medicina, Universidade do Algarve, Faro, Portugal. lcampino@ihmt.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Lenea
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Campino
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D007303:Insect Vectors; D007891:Leishmania / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008297:Male; D011174:Portugal; D011576:Psychodidae / Q000469:parasitology*; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D016054:DNA, Protozoan