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MalAvi : A public database of malaria parasites and related haemosporidians in avian hosts based on mitochondrial cytochrome b lineages

Bensch, Staffan LU ; Hellgren, Olof LU and PÉrez-Tris, Javier LU (2009) In Molecular Ecology Resources 9(5). p.1353-1358
Abstract

Research in avian blood parasites has seen a remarkable increase since the introduction of polymerase chain reaction-based methods for parasite identification. New data are revealing complex multihost-multiparasite systems which are difficult to understand without good knowledge of the host range and geographical distribution of the parasite lineages. However, such information is currently difficult to obtain from the literature, or from general repositories such as GenBank, mainly because (i) different research groups use different parasite lineage names, (ii) GenBank entries frequently refer only to the first host and locality at which each parasite was sampled, and (iii) different researchers use different gene fragments to identify... (More)

Research in avian blood parasites has seen a remarkable increase since the introduction of polymerase chain reaction-based methods for parasite identification. New data are revealing complex multihost-multiparasite systems which are difficult to understand without good knowledge of the host range and geographical distribution of the parasite lineages. However, such information is currently difficult to obtain from the literature, or from general repositories such as GenBank, mainly because (i) different research groups use different parasite lineage names, (ii) GenBank entries frequently refer only to the first host and locality at which each parasite was sampled, and (iii) different researchers use different gene fragments to identify parasite lineages. We propose a unified database of avian blood parasites of the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon identified by a partial region of their cytochrome b sequences. The database uses a standardized nomenclature to remove synonymy, and concentrates all available information about each parasite in a public reference site, thereby facilitating access to all researchers. Initial data include a list of host species and localities, as well as genetic markers that can be used for phylogenetical analyses. The database is free to download and will be regularly updated by the authors. Prior to publication of new lineages, we encourage researchers to assign names to match the existing database. We anticipate that the value of the database as a source for determining host range and geographical distribution of the parasites will grow with its size and substantially enhance the understanding of this remarkably diverse group of parasites.

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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
host-parasite interactions, Plasmodium, Leucocytozoon, Haemoproteus, host range
in
Molecular Ecology Resources
volume
9
issue
5
pages
6 pages
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • wos:000268855000007
  • scopus:68949114368
  • pmid:21564906
ISSN
1755-098X
DOI
10.1111/j.1755-0998.2009.02692.x
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
914d9e2c-3c9b-4351-8914-f4d9ab597cb6 (old id 1478149)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 11:54:49
date last changed
2022-06-17 08:27:04
@article{914d9e2c-3c9b-4351-8914-f4d9ab597cb6,
  abstract     = {{<p>Research in avian blood parasites has seen a remarkable increase since the introduction of polymerase chain reaction-based methods for parasite identification. New data are revealing complex multihost-multiparasite systems which are difficult to understand without good knowledge of the host range and geographical distribution of the parasite lineages. However, such information is currently difficult to obtain from the literature, or from general repositories such as GenBank, mainly because (i) different research groups use different parasite lineage names, (ii) GenBank entries frequently refer only to the first host and locality at which each parasite was sampled, and (iii) different researchers use different gene fragments to identify parasite lineages. We propose a unified database of avian blood parasites of the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon identified by a partial region of their cytochrome b sequences. The database uses a standardized nomenclature to remove synonymy, and concentrates all available information about each parasite in a public reference site, thereby facilitating access to all researchers. Initial data include a list of host species and localities, as well as genetic markers that can be used for phylogenetical analyses. The database is free to download and will be regularly updated by the authors. Prior to publication of new lineages, we encourage researchers to assign names to match the existing database. We anticipate that the value of the database as a source for determining host range and geographical distribution of the parasites will grow with its size and substantially enhance the understanding of this remarkably diverse group of parasites.</p>}},
  author       = {{Bensch, Staffan and Hellgren, Olof and PÉrez-Tris, Javier}},
  issn         = {{1755-098X}},
  keywords     = {{host-parasite interactions; Plasmodium; Leucocytozoon; Haemoproteus; host range}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{5}},
  pages        = {{1353--1358}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Molecular Ecology Resources}},
  title        = {{MalAvi : A public database of malaria parasites and related haemosporidians in avian hosts based on mitochondrial cytochrome b lineages}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-0998.2009.02692.x}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/j.1755-0998.2009.02692.x}},
  volume       = {{9}},
  year         = {{2009}},
}