Detection and characterization of Wolbachia infections in laboratory and natural populations of different species of tsetse flies (genus Glossina)

• DOI: 10.1186/1471-2180-12-s1-s3
• Publication Date: 2012-01-18T19:38:32Z
• Authors: Vangelis Doudoumis; George Tsiamis; Florence Wamwiri; Corey Brelsfoard; Uzma Alam; Emre Aksoy; Stelios Dalaperas; Adly Abd-Alla; Johnson Ouma; Peter Takac; Serap Aksoy; Kostas Bourtzis
• Keywords: Tsetse fly; Cytoplasmic incompatibility; Multilocus sequence typing

Wolbachia is a genus of endosymbiotic α-Proteobacteria infecting wide range arthropods and filarial nematodes. able to induce reproductive abnormalities such as cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), thelytokous parthenogenesis, feminization male killing, thus affecting biology, ecology evolution its hosts. The bacterial group has prompted research regarding potential for the control agricultural medical disease vectors, including Glossina spp., which transmits African trypanosomes, causative agents sleeping sickness in humans nagana animals.In present study, we employed specific 16S rRNA PCR assay investigate presence six different laboratory stocks well natural populations nine species originating from 10 countries. was prevalent morsitans morsitans, G. centralis austeni populations. It also detected brevipalpis, and, first time, pallidipes palpalis gambiensis. On other hand, not found p. palpalis, fuscipes tachinoides. infections were characterized using rRNA, wsp (Wolbachia Surface Protein) gene MLST (Multi Locus Sequence Typing) markers. This analysis led detection horizontal transfer events, Wobachia genes inserted into tsetse flies fly nuclear genome.Wolbachia both several species. characterization these strains promises lead deeper insight flies-Wolbachia interactions, essential development use Wolbachia-based biological methods.