Molecular evidence of Leishmania spp. in spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) from The Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Veracruz, Mexico.

The black-handed spider monkey (Ateles geoffroyi) is a platyrrhine primate distributed in southern Mexico, Central America, and part of South America. Two subspecies inhabit Mexico: Ateles geoffroyi vellerosus and Ateles geoffroyi yucatanensis, both threatened with extinction. Serological evidence of exposure of spider monkeys to various groups of parasites such as Trypanosoma cruzi in México and Leishmania spp. in Brazil has been reported. The genus Leishmania encompasses about 23 species of flagellate protozoa that are transmitted by the bite of females of Phlebotominae sand flies. These parasites cause a zoonotic disease called leishmaniasis, which generates skin, mucocutaneous and/or visceral manifestations. The aim of the present study was to demonstrate the presence of Leishmania sp. in spider monkeys from the Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Veracruz, Mexico. Blood samples from 10 free- ranging specimens of A. geoffroyi yucatanensis and 11 specimens in captivity of A. geoffroyi vellerosus were collected and used. The samples were subjected to a conventional Polymerase Chain Reaction test for the identification of a 116 bp fragment of a region from the kinetoplast minicircle of the parasite. Our analyzes showed that 71.4% of the sampled animals had fragment sizes compatible with Leishmania spp. The implications involve the survival of the specimens and the possibility that these primates act as sentinels of the disease. Furthermore, it is the first report suggesting the presence of Leishmania spp. in A. geoffroyi vellerosus and A. geoffroyi yucatanensis in Veracruz, Mexico.