spp. Neobats: Insights about those poorly known trypanosomatids.

Bats are infected with several trypanosomatid species; however, assessing the diversity of this interaction remains challenging since there are species apparently unable to grow in conventional culture media. Accordingly, the ecology and biology of the Molecular Operational Taxonomic Units (MOTUs) spp. Neobats are unknown. Therefore, we performed the molecular characterization targeting the 18S small subunit rDNA from the blood clot of 280 bats of three Brazilian regions (Paraíba, Rio de Janeiro and Acre states), bypassing the selective pressure of hemoculture. From 68 (24%) positive blood clot samples, we obtained 49 satisfactory sequences. Of these successfully sequenced results, spp. Neobats (1, 3 and 4) represented 67%, with the most abundant . sp. Neobat 4 (53%). Our results show: (1) high abundance and wide geographic range of sp. Neobat 4, restricted to bats; (2) high infection rate of . sp. Neobat 4 in populations (mean 26%); (3) infection with the monoxenous ; and (4) a new MOTU (. sp. Neobat 5) in , positioning in the clade. These data corroborate the importance of bats as hosts of many species and . They also show that the diversity of the clade is underestimated and warn about the high magnitude of trypanosomes we overpass with the hemoculture. Our findings combined with previous data show that spp. Neobats include host-specific and host-generalist species, probably playing different ecological roles: . sp. Neobat 1 shows broad host range; . spp. Neobat 3 and 4 are restricted to and , respectively. Finally, . Neobat 4 seems to be a well-succeeded parasite, especially within metapopulations across a wide geographical distribution. This work is a step forward to understand the biology and life history of spp. Neobats.