AUTHOR=Rodríguez-Ruano Sonia M. , Škochová Veronika , Rego Ryan O. M. , Schmidt Justin O. , Roachell Walter , Hypša Václav , Nováková Eva TITLE=Microbiomes of North American Triatominae: The Grounds for Chagas Disease Epidemiology JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology VOLUME=9 YEAR=2018 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2018.01167 DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2018.01167 ISSN=1664-302X ABSTRACT=
Insect microbiomes influence many fundamental host traits, including functions of practical significance such as their capacity as vectors to transmit parasites and pathogens. The knowledge on the diversity and development of the gut microbiomes in various blood feeding insects is thus crucial not only for theoretical purposes, but also for the development of better disease control strategies. In Triatominae (Heteroptera: Reduviidae), the blood feeding vectors of Chagas disease in South America and parts of North America, the investigation of the microbiomes is in its infancy. The few studies done on microbiomes of South American Triatominae species indicate a relatively low taxonomic diversity and a high host specificity. We designed a comparative survey to serve several purposes: (I) to obtain a better insight into the overall microbiome diversity in different species, (II) to check the long term stability of the interspecific differences, (III) to describe the ontogenetic changes of the microbiome, and (IV) to determine the potential correlation between microbiome composition and presence of