AUTHOR=Rodi Miriam , Gross Caspar , Sandri Thaisa Lucas , Berner Lilith , Marcet-Houben Marina , Kocak Ersoy , Pogoda Michaela , Casadei Nicolas , Köhler Carsten , Kreidenweiss Andrea , Agnandji Selidji Todagbe , Gabaldón Toni , Ossowski Stephan , Held Jana 

TITLE=Whole genome analysis of two sympatric human Mansonella: Mansonella perstans and Mansonella sp “DEUX”

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2023.1159814

DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2023.1159814

ISSN=2235-2988

ABSTRACT=Mansonella species are filarial parasites that infect humans worldwide. Although these infections are common, knowledge of the pathology and diversity of the causative species is limited. Furthermore, the lack of sequencing data for Mansonella species, shows that their research is neglected. Apart from Mansonella perstans, a potential new species called Mansonella sp “DEUX” has been identified in Gabon, which is prevalent at high frequencies. To further determine if Mansonella sp “DEUX” is a genotype of M. perstans, or if these are two sympatric species, we successfully generated whole genomes for M. perstans as well as for Mansonella sp “DEUX”. Phylogenetic analysis based on annotated protein sequences as well as the mitogenomes, support the hypothesis of two distinct species. The inferred evolutionary analysis suggests, that M. perstans and Mansonella sp “DEUX” have separated around 778,000 years ago. The availability of whole genome data will allow further investigations of these species.