ArticleParasites & vectors2023
Humans as blood-feeding sources in sylvatic triatomines of Chile unveiled by next-generation sequencing.
Article in Parasites & vectors, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 14 citations in OpenAlex.
- Who Feeds theMicroorganisms · 2026Article
- Temperature variability increases Trypanosoma cruzi load but not the extrinsic incubation period in Triatoma infestans.Parasites & vectors · 2026Article
- Deforestation and human proximity influence Trypanosoma cruzi infection in palm-dwelling triatomines.PloS one · 2026Article
- Post-zygotic reproductive barriers confirm absence of continuous interspecific gene flow between Mepraia spp. (Hemiptera, Triatominae).Scientific reports · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundTriatomines are blood-sucking insects capable of transmitting Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasite that causes Chagas disease in humans. Vectorial transmission entails an infected triatomine feeding on a vertebrate host, release of triatomine infective dejections, and host infection by the entry of parasites through mucous membranes, skin abrasions, or the biting site; therefore, transmission to humans is related to the triatomine-human contact. In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated whether humans were detected in the diet of three sylvatic triatomine species (Mepraia parapatrica, Mepraia spinolai, and Triatoma infestans) present in the semiarid-Mediterranean ecosystem of Chile.
methodsWe used triatomines collected from 32 sites across 1100 km, with an overall T. cruzi infection frequency of 47.1% (N = 4287 total specimens) by conventional PCR or qPCR. First, we amplified the vertebrate cytochrome b gene (cytb) from all DNA samples obtained from triatomine intestinal contents. Then, we sequenced cytb-positive PCR products in pools of 10-20 triatomines each, grouped by site. The filtered sequences were grouped into amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) with a minimum abundance of 100 reads. ASVs were identified by selecting the best BLASTn match against the NCBI nucleotide database.
resultsOverall, 16 mammal (including human), 14 bird, and seven reptile species were identified in the diet of sylvatic triatomines. Humans were part of the diet of all analyzed triatomine species, and it was detected in 19 sites representing 12.19% of the sequences.
conclusionsSylvatic triatomine species from Chile feed on a variety of vertebrate species; many of them are detected here for the first time in their diet. Our results highlight that the sylvatic triatomine-human contact is noteworthy. Education must be enforced for local inhabitants, workers, and tourists arriving in endemic areas to avoid or minimize the risk of exposure to Chagas disease vectors.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.