The First Isolation of Microsporidia from Dragonflies in Japan.

Abstract

Entomopathogenic microsporidia are pathogens of various arthropods and therefore cause disease in important host species ranging from agricultural pests to beneficial insects. Here, we investigated three genera of entomopathogenic microsporidia from dragonflies； these were isolated in Kanagawa, Japan, in 2014. In total, the infection rate was 0.85%（16 of the 1,886 surveyed dragonfly adults）. Four strains of microsporidia selected from infected Orthetrum albistylum speciosum（Uhler）（Odonata: Libellulidae）adults were measured for spore size and analyzed at the molecular level. According to spore size, the four strains were roughly divided into two groups. Analysis of small-subunit ribosomal RNA sequences indicated that the microsporidia strains belonged to the Trachipleistophora, Vavraia, and Paranosema clusters. Microsporidia species that are closely related to the strains isolated in this study have previously been reported to infect insects other than dragonflies. Therefore, we suggest the possibility that the microsporidian strains we isolated in O. albistylum speciosum may also infect other insect species.