Experimental Susceptibility of Nyssomyia antunesi and Lutzomyia longipalpis (Psychodidae: Phlebotominae) to Leishmania ( Viannia ) lainsoni and L. ( V. ) lindenbergi (Trypanosomatidae: Leishmaniinae)

The present work assessed the experimental susceptibility of and to ( ) and ( .) . A ( ) - combination was used as a susceptible control. Wild-caught and laboratory-bred were membrane-fed on blood with a 5 × 10 /mL log-phase promastigote culture suspension and dissected on days 2 and 8 post-blood meal (pbm) for analysis focused on the assessment of parasitoses, as well as placement and promastigote morphotyping. Survival curves were constructed. In all combinations, promastigotes were observed on day 8 pbm. For both species, in , the presence of parasites was observed up to the stomodeal valve, while in , the presence of parasites was observed up to the cardia. There were no significant differences in parasitosis between ( ) and ( ) in either or . Six morphological promastigote forms were distinguished in Giemsa-stained gut smears. The survival curves of all combinations decreased and were affected differently by several -parasite combinations, as well with -uninfected blood. These findings stress as experimentally susceptible to spp. and suggest the putative susceptibility of to ( ) and ( ) .