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Trypanosomes of Rodents and Lagomorphs
Valsová, Iveta ; Votýpka, Jan (advisor) ; Sádlová, Jovana (referee)
Trypanosomes (Kinetoplastea) are widespread endoparasitic protozoa commonly found in all vertebrate groups. Some species cause serious diseases in humans and livestock, while non- pathogenic species cause little or no apparent negative effects on the host and are mostly host- specific. The high host specificity of mammalian trypanosomes is found in the rodent- associated subgenus Herpetosoma. This study is focused on trypanosomes of rodents and rabbits. Experimental infections of rodents have shown that some trypanosomes are only able to infect their natural hosts. However, an exception to these highly host-specific species of the subgenus Herpetosoma is T. lewisi, which has been demonstrated not only in rodents but also in primates, including humans. Rodent trypanosomes, like rodents themselves, are cosmopolitan and their vectors are fleas. More than 50 species of trypanosomes have been gradually included into the subgenus Herpetosoma, mainly based on blood-stage morphology and their host specificity. However, with the development of biochemical and molecular methods, this number may change significantly. Key words: Trypanosoma, Herpetosoma, rodents, lagomorphs, morphology, development cycle, vectors
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