Scholarlink

Background <p>Haemosporida is a diverse order of vector-borne apicomplexan parasites infecting terrestrial vertebrates worldwide, including humans, but the evolutionary relationships among its genera remain unresolved. The phylogenetic placement of two bat-restricted genera, <i>Nycteria</i> and <i>Polychromophilus</i>, both of which lack erythrocytic schizogony, has varied across studies depending on taxon sampling and marker choice.</p> Methods <p>To address this problem, an expanded dataset of near-complete mitochondrial (mtDNA) genomes together with nine nuclear loci were analyzed.</p> Results <p>Phylogenetic analyses of mtDNA recovered <i>Nycteria</i> and <i>Polychromophilus</i> as a strongly supported monophyletic clade. In contrast, analyses based only on the three mitochondrial coding genes (CDS) or a reduced nuclear dataset failed to recover their monophyly and showed low support and extensive topological conflict at deeper nodes. These results indicate that the near-complete mitochondrial genomes recover phylogenetic signal that is not captured by reduced mitochondrial coding sequences or partial nuclear datasets. Molecular dating analyses further showed that divergence estimates for a putative <i>Nycteria</i>-<i>Polychromophilus</i> clade are compatible with the proposed times for bat diversification and consistent with the broader haemosporidian timescale. When the <i>Nycteria-Polychromophilus</i> clade was incorporated as a calibration prior, divergence-time estimates became more precise without altering the overall evolutionary timeframe. Substantial mitochondrial gene-order rearrangements in a distinct <i>Nycteria</i> lineage were confirmed, highlighting structural divergence within this bat-associated group. In addition, heterogeneity in rates across mtDNA haemosporidian lineages was observed.</p> Conclusion <p>Together, these findings support the existence of a distinct bat-associated clade whose deeper placement and evolutionary significance should be tested with broader phylogenomic sampling.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

The monophyly of Nycteria and Polychromophilus parasites: a missing piece in the evolution of malaria and other Haemosporida

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月5日

查看全文
  • M. Andreína Pacheco,
  • Juliane Schaer,
  • Oskar Werb,
  • Beatriz Mello,
  • Ananías A. Escalante

摘要

Background

Haemosporida is a diverse order of vector-borne apicomplexan parasites infecting terrestrial vertebrates worldwide, including humans, but the evolutionary relationships among its genera remain unresolved. The phylogenetic placement of two bat-restricted genera, Nycteria and Polychromophilus, both of which lack erythrocytic schizogony, has varied across studies depending on taxon sampling and marker choice.

Methods

To address this problem, an expanded dataset of near-complete mitochondrial (mtDNA) genomes together with nine nuclear loci were analyzed.

Results

Phylogenetic analyses of mtDNA recovered Nycteria and Polychromophilus as a strongly supported monophyletic clade. In contrast, analyses based only on the three mitochondrial coding genes (CDS) or a reduced nuclear dataset failed to recover their monophyly and showed low support and extensive topological conflict at deeper nodes. These results indicate that the near-complete mitochondrial genomes recover phylogenetic signal that is not captured by reduced mitochondrial coding sequences or partial nuclear datasets. Molecular dating analyses further showed that divergence estimates for a putative Nycteria-Polychromophilus clade are compatible with the proposed times for bat diversification and consistent with the broader haemosporidian timescale. When the Nycteria-Polychromophilus clade was incorporated as a calibration prior, divergence-time estimates became more precise without altering the overall evolutionary timeframe. Substantial mitochondrial gene-order rearrangements in a distinct Nycteria lineage were confirmed, highlighting structural divergence within this bat-associated group. In addition, heterogeneity in rates across mtDNA haemosporidian lineages was observed.

Conclusion

Together, these findings support the existence of a distinct bat-associated clade whose deeper placement and evolutionary significance should be tested with broader phylogenomic sampling.