Isolation and characterization of 25 microsatellite DNA loci for Anopheles albitarsis sensu lato and inter-specific amplification in 5 congeneric species.

The Anopheles albitasis complex includes 6 species, and 3 are considered as malaria vectors in Brazil. Twenty-five polymorphic microsatellite DNA loci were isolated and characterized in 24-36 individuals from the neighborhood of Puraquequara, Manaus, Amazonas State, Brazil. The number of estimated alleles ranged from 2 to 10, the observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.182 to 0.897, and the expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.260 to 0.854. Eleven loci showed significant deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Eleven loci were cross-amplified successfully in 5 Anopheles species. These microsatellite loci will be useful in studies investigating population structure and evolutionary genetics in A. albitarsis sensu lato and other A. albitarsis complex species

Physical Mapping of the \u3ci\u3eAnopheles\u3c/i\u3e (\u3ci\u3eNyssorhynchus\u3c/i\u3e) \u3ci\u3edarlingi\u3c/i\u3e Genomic Scaffolds

The genome assembly of Anopheles darlingi consists of 2221 scaffolds (N50 = 115,072 bp) and has a size spanning 136.94 Mbp. This assembly represents one of the smallest genomes among Anopheles species. Anopheles darlingi genomic DNA fragments of ~37 Kb were cloned, end-sequenced, and used as probes for fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with salivary gland polytene chromosomes. In total, we mapped nine DNA probes to scaffolds and autosomal arms. Comparative analysis of the An. darlingi scaffolds with homologous sequences of the Anopheles albimanus and Anopheles gambiae genomes identified chromosomal rearrangements among these species. Our results confirmed that physical mapping is a useful tool for anchoring genome assemblies to mosquito chromosomes

The Genome of Anopheles darlingi, the main neotropical malaria vector

Anopheles darlingi is the principal neotropical malaria vector, responsible for more than a million cases of malaria per year on the American continent. Anopheles darlingi diverged from the African and Asian malaria vectors ∼100 million years ago (mya) and successfully adapted to the New World environment. Here we present an annotated reference A. darlingi genome, sequenced from a wild population of males and females collected in the Brazilian Amazon. A total of 10 481 predicted protein-coding genes were annotated, 72% of which have their closest counterpart in Anopheles gambiae and 21% have highest similarity with other mosquito species. In spite of a long period of divergent evolution, conserved gene synteny was observed between A. darlingi and A. gambiae. More than 10 million single nucleotide polymorphisms and short indels with potential use as genetic markers were identified. Transposable elements correspond to 2.3% of the A. darlingi genome. Genes associated with hematophagy, immunity and insecticide resistance, directly involved in vectorhuman and vectorparasite interactions, were identified and discussed. This study represents the first effort to sequence the genome of a neotropical malaria vector, and opens a new window through which we can contemplate the evolutionary history of anopheline mosquitoes. It also provides valuable information that may lead to novel strategies to reduce malaria transmission on the South American continent. The A. darlingi genome is accessible at www.labinfo.lncc.br/index.php/anopheles- darlingi. © 2013 The Author(s)

Phylogenetic analysis of the GST family in Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) darlingi

Anopheles darlingi Root, 1926 and Anopheles gambiae (Diptera: Culicidae) are the most important human malaria vectors in South America and Africa, respectively. The two species are estimated to have diverged 100 million years ago. Studies on the phylogenetics and evolution of gene sequences, such as glutathione S-transferase (GST) in disease-transmitting mosquitoes are scarce. The sigma class GST (KC890767) from the transcriptome of An. darlingi captured in the Brazilian Amazon was studied by in silico hybridization, and mapped to chromosome 3 of An. gambiae. The sigma class GST of An. darlingi was used for phylogenetic analyses to understand the GST base composition of the most recent common ancestor between An. darlingi, Anopheles gambiae, Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus. The GST (KC890767) of An. darlingi was studied to generate the main divergence branches using a Neighbor-Joining and bootstrapping approaches to confirm confidence levels on the tree nodes that separate the An. darlingi and other mosquito species. The results showed divergence between An. gambiae, Ae. Aegypti, Cx. quinquefasciatus, and Phlebotomus papatasi as outgroup, and the homology relationship between sigma class GST of An. darlingi and GSTS1_1 gene of An. gambiae was valuable for phylogenetic and evolutionary studies. © 2014 Elsevier B.V

Physical mapping of the Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) darlingi genomic scaffolds

Anopheles darlingi mosquitoes are the main vectors of malaria in the Brazilian Amazon. To assign genomic DNA sequences to chromosomes of this species, we performed fluorescence in situ hybridization of DNA probes with salivary glands polytene chromosomes. We compared the physical locations of the An. darlingi probes with homologous sequences in other Anopheles species, namely Anopheles albimanus and Anopheles gambiae. The results demonstrated that substantial genome rearrangements occurred throughout the evolutionary history of these mosquitoes. The physical mapping data can be useful for improving the structural accuracy of the An. darlingi genome assembly and for understanding the chromosomal evolution of these mosquitoe

NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES: a data set on carnivore distribution in the Neotropics

Mammalian carnivores are considered a key group in maintaining ecological health and can indicate potential ecological integrity in landscapes where they occur. Carnivores also hold high conservation value and their habitat requirements can guide management and conservation plans. The order Carnivora has 84 species from 8 families in the Neotropical region: Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Otariidae; Phocidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae. Herein, we include published and unpublished data on native terrestrial Neotropical carnivores (Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae). NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES is a publicly available data set that includes 99,605 data entries from 35,511 unique georeferenced coordinates. Detection/non-detection and quantitative data were obtained from 1818 to 2018 by researchers, governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private consultants. Data were collected using several methods including camera trapping, museum collections, roadkill, line transect, and opportunistic records. Literature (peer-reviewed and grey literature) from Portuguese, Spanish and English were incorporated in this compilation. Most of the data set consists of detection data entries (n = 79,343; 79.7%) but also includes non-detection data (n = 20,262; 20.3%). Of those, 43.3% also include count data (n = 43,151). The information available in NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES will contribute to macroecological, ecological, and conservation questions in multiple spatio-temporal perspectives. As carnivores play key roles in trophic interactions, a better understanding of their distribution and habitat requirements are essential to establish conservation management plans and safeguard the future ecological health of Neotropical ecosystems. Our data paper, combined with other large-scale data sets, has great potential to clarify species distribution and related ecological processes within the Neotropics. There are no copyright restrictions and no restriction for using data from this data paper, as long as the data paper is cited as the source of the information used. We also request that users inform us of how they intend to use the data