Molecular evidence of Bartonella spp. in sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) from the Brazilian Amazon

Bartonellosis refers to a group of diseases caused by alpha-proteobacteria from the genus Bartonella, which are typically vector-borne pathogens responsible for emerging and reemerging infections in humans and animals. The transmission of Bartonella has primarily been associated with a wide variety of hematophagous arthropods, including sand flies. The present study aimed to investigate the presence of Bartonella spp. DNA in 297 non-engorged female sand fly specimens (Diptera: Psychodidae) collected in the Amazonian National Park, state of Pará, Brazil. We documented a 12.6 % (32/253) infection rate of Bartonella spp. among the sampled sand flies, using a quantitative real-time PCR targeting the 16S-23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. Further molecular characterization was performed using conventional PCR assays targeting seven molecular markers (rpoB, ribC, nuoG, pap-31, groEL, gltA, and ftsZ). Phylogenetic inference grouped the two Bartonella spp. gltA sequences, detected in Psychodopygus llanosmartinsi and Psychodopygus series Chagasi, in the same clade as Bartonella ancashensis, Bartonella bacilliformis, and ancient lineages of Bartonella spp. previously detected in sand flies from Mexico and Brazil. The role of phlebotomine sand flies in the transmission of Bartonella spp. among bats and the zoonotic potential of the detected genotypes nested in B. ancashensis/B. bacilliformis clade should be further investigated.