PLoS ONE (Jan 2016)

Haemosporidian Parasites of Antelopes and Other Vertebrates from Gabon, Central Africa.

  • Larson Boundenga,
  • Boris Makanga,
  • Benjamin Ollomo,
  • Aude Gilabert,
  • Virginie Rougeron,
  • Bertrand Mve-Ondo,
  • Céline Arnathau,
  • Patrick Durand,
  • Nancy Diamella Moukodoum,
  • Alain-Prince Okouga,
  • Lucresse Delicat-Loembet,
  • Lauriane Yacka-Mouele,
  • Nil Rahola,
  • Eric Leroy,
  • Cheikh Tidiane Ba,
  • Francois Renaud,
  • Franck Prugnolle,
  • Christophe Paupy

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0148958
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 2
p. e0148958

Abstract

Read online

Re-examination, using molecular tools, of the diversity of haemosporidian parasites (among which the agents of human malaria are the best known) has generally led to rearrangements of traditional classifications. In this study, we explored the diversity of haemosporidian parasites infecting vertebrate species (particularly mammals, birds and reptiles) living in the forests of Gabon (Central Africa), by analyzing a collection of 492 bushmeat samples. We found that samples from five mammalian species (four duiker and one pangolin species), one bird and one turtle species were infected by haemosporidian parasites. In duikers (from which most of the infected specimens were obtained), we demonstrated the existence of at least two distinct parasite lineages related to Polychromophilus species (i.e., bat haemosporidian parasites) and to sauropsid Plasmodium (from birds and lizards). Molecular screening of sylvatic mosquitoes captured during a longitudinal survey revealed the presence of these haemosporidian parasite lineages also in several Anopheles species, suggesting a potential role in their transmission. Our results show that, differently from what was previously thought, several independent clades of haemosporidian parasites (family Plasmodiidae) infect mammals and are transmitted by anopheline mosquitoes.