DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Systematics and Biogeography of the Trypanosoma cruzi Clade

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Trypanosoma cruzi is the parasite that causes Chagas disease, which infects 8-9 million people in rural Latin America, and the Southern U.S. Despite its importance, little is known in terms of how and where this parasite evolved. There are competing hypotheses pointing either to marsupials or bats as original hosts of T. cruzi and its closest relatives before jumping to other mammals, including humans. However, no definitive data have been gathered to favor one hypothesis over the other. This project will dissect the evolutionary relationships among mammalian trypanosomes to clarify the host and geographic origins of these parasites through the generation of DNA sequence data from both museum specimens and contemporary samples followed by molecular phylogenetic and biogeographic analyses.This research will promote awareness of the importance of museum collections to research efforts. Also, a new website "PhyloTryp" will be implemented, which will provide standardized tools and data to facilitate evolutionary research on trypanosomes. Finally, the training of an undergraduate student will be accomplished through the AMNH REU program. By the end of the program, the student will have gained basic laboratory and analytical skills, and a peer-review publication will be prepared with the mentee.