Molecular Typing of Histoplasma capsulatum Isolated from Infected Bats, Captured in Mexico

The present paper represents data on the genetic polymorphism of 13 Histoplasma capsulatum isolates recovered from infected bats randomly captured in the Mexican states of Morelos, Puebla, and Oaxaca. The polymorphic DNA patterns were analyzed by two-primer RAPD-PCR (random amplified polymorphic DNA–polymerase chain reaction) method. To amplify the fungal genome by PCR, the following primer arrangements were used: 5′-AACGCGCAAC-3′ and 5′-AAGAGCCCGT-3′; 5′-AACGCGCAAC-3′ and 5′-GTTTCCGCCC-3′; or 5′-AACGCGCAAC-3′ and 5′-GCGATCCCCA-3′. A common polymorphic DNA pattern of H. capsulatum was revealed in different assays. This pattern is shared by 7 H. capsulatum isolates recovered from different specimens of nonmigratory bats (Artibeus hirsutus) captured in a cave in Morelos, by 5 isolates recovered from infected migratory bats (Leptonycteris nivalis) captured in Morelos and Puebla, and by 1 isolate from another migratory bat (L. curasoae) captured in Oaxaca. This polymorphic DNA pattern of H. capsulatum could represent fungal markers for the geographic areas studied, and considering its distribution in three different states of the Mexican Republic, the role of bats as responsible for H. capsulatum spreading in nature, in relation to their movements and migrations besides their shelter habits, is suggested. Analyses of DNA patterns of H. capsulatum isolated from infected bats, from clinical cases, and from blackbird excreta, have shown a major relatedness between bats and clinical isolates, in contrast to those isolates from bird excreta.