Genetic diversity of Hepatozoon spp. in rodents from Chile

Abstract This study aimed to investigate the genetic diversity of Hepatozoon spp. in rodents from Valdivia, Chile. A total of 74 rodents (synanthropic n=38; wild n=36) were trapped in Valdivia. We performed conventional PCR assays for Apicomplexa organisms targeting two overlapping 18S rDNA gene fragments (600 bp and 900 bp) followed by sequencing of selected amplicons. Hepatozoon spp. occurrence was 82.43% (61/74). Twelve sequences obtained from the 600 bp and ten from the 900 bp 18S rDNA fragments were identified as Hepatozoon sp. Six sequences obtained from 18S rDNA-based overlapping PCR protocols were used for concatenated (1,400 bp) phylogenetic, haplotype and distance analyses. Hepatozoon spp. 18S rDNA concatenated sequences from the present study were detected in Oligoryzomys longicaudatus, Rattus norvegicus, Mus musculus, and Abrothrix longipilis grouped with Hepatozoon species earlier described in rodents and reptiles from Chile and Brazil. Nucleotide polymorphism of the six 18S rDNA sequences (1,400 bp) from this study, and other Chilean sequences from rodents and rodent’s ticks, showed high diversity with a total of nine Chilean haplotypes. Three haplotypes from Valdivia were identified for the first time in this study, suggesting the circulation of novel haplotypes in rodents from southern Chile.