Identification of Trypanosoma Strains Isolated in Central and South America by Endoncleases Cleavage and Duplex PCR of Kinetoplast-DNA

Abstract

In this study, we report the characterization of seven trypanosome stocks isolated in different geographical ar- eas of Latin America and from different vector species, by analysis of kinetoplast DNA (kDNA) restriction fragment- length polymorphism, using five different restriction endonucleases, and genomic DNA by duplex PCR assay. According to the statistical study, the stocks were grouped into three clusters: cluster 1 held the three stocks of T. cruzi used as refer- ences. Very close to these were the stocks isolated in the Peruvian Amazon (TP702, TP704 and TP706), which constituted cluster 2. This cluster also included stock TP504, although this would be a hybrid between T. cruzi and T. rangeli. Cluster 3 consisted of the trypanosomes isolated from salivary glands (TRa, TRa605, TRa606 and TM5), these four stocks being the same as T. rangeli, and the phylogenetic separation observed could be due to having been isolated T. cruzi.