DNA may reveal a fly's favorite eatery.(research indicates sand flies transmit parasites called leishmaniase)(Brief Article)

From: Science News | Date: June 12, 1999 | Copyright information

In the tropics of the Americas and elsewhere, beware the bite of sand flies. These insects, which feast at night, often transmit disease-causing parasites when they procure a blood meal from their victim. Sand flies can infect people with the parasites, called leishmaniase, that cause a family of potentially fatal diseases that afflict an estimated 12 million people worldwide.

The source of the parasites must be another mammal that the sand fly bites. Identifying those natural hosts might help ...

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