# Description of Four New Trypanosoma Species Infecting Small Wild Mammals from Two Brazilian Biomes: The Pantanal and Cerrado Hotspots

## TL;DR

This study discovers four new species of Trypanosoma parasites infecting small wild mammals in the Pantanal and Cerrado regions of Brazil.

## Contribution

The paper describes four new Trypanosoma species using both morphological and genetic analyses.

## Key findings

- Four new Trypanosoma species were identified in small mammals from the Pantanal and Cerrado biomes.
- Phylogenetic analysis using SSUrDNA and gGAPDH genes supported the distinction of these new species.
- Morphological studies confirmed the biological and morphological discontinuities of the new species.

## Abstract

The parasites of the genus Trypanosoma have a great diversity of vertebrate hosts and can be transmitted by several groups of invertebrates. All rodent and marsupial species are potential hosts of different trypanosome species. Most species descriptions of trypanosomes have been based only on morphological characteristics. In this study, we conducted a survey on trypanosome infection in small mammals that were caught in an area of the Brazilian Pantanal (Wetlands) and Cerrado (Savanna) biomes in the state of Mato Grosso. The trypanosomes isolated were included in phylogenetic studies based on the SSUrDNA and gGAPDH genes, which were complemented through morphological studies based on scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The morphological and biological discontinuities, along with the phylogenetic position, made it possible to describe four new species of trypanosome hosted by marsupials and rodents, which we described and named as Trypanosoma daniloi sp. nov., Trypanosoma favoritoae sp. nov., Trypanosoma percequilloi sp. nov., and Trypanosoma trefauti sp. nov.