BACKGROUND Knowledge on synanthropic phlebotomines and their natural infection by Leishmania is necessary for the identification of potential areas for leishmaniasis occurrence. OBJECTIVE To analyse the occurrence of Phlebotominae in gallery forests and household units (HUs) in the city of Palmas and to determine the rate of natural infection by trypanosomatids. METHODS Gallery forests and adjacent household areas were sampled on July (dry season) and November (rainy season) in 2014. The total sampling effort was 960 HP light traps and eight Shannon traps. Trypanosomatids were detected in Phlebotominae females through the amplification of the SSU rDNA region, and the positive samples were used in ITS1-PCR. Trypanosomatid species were identified using sequencing. FINDINGS A total of 1,527 sand flies representing 30 species were captured in which 949 (28 spp.) and 578 (22 spp.) were registered in July and November, respectively. In July, more specimens were captured in the gallery forests than in the HUs, and Nyssomyia whitmani was particularly frequent. In November, most of the specimens were found in the HUs, and again, Ny. whitmani was the predominant species. Lutzomyia longipalpis was commonly found in domestic areas, while Bichromomyia flaviscutellata was most frequent in gallery forests. Molecular analysis of 154 pools of females (752 specimens) identified Leishmania amazonensis, L. infantum, and Crithidia fasciculata in Ny. whitmani, as well as L. amazonensis in Lu. longipalpis, Trypanosoma sp. and L. amazonensis in Pintomyia christenseni, and L. amazonensis in both Psathyromyia hermanlenti and Evandromyia walkeri. MAIN CONCLUSIONS These results show the importance of gallery forests in maintaining Phlebotominae populations in the dry month, as well as their frequent occurrence in household units in the rainy month. This is the first study to identify Leishmania, Trypanosoma, and Crithidia species in Phlebotominae collected in Palmas, Tocantins, Brazil.

Abstract: INTRODUCTION : This study describes the occurrence of trypanosomatids in phlebotomines in Brasília, Brazil. METHODS : Two hundred and ten females of 13 sand fly species were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using different molecular markers (D7 24Sα rRNA, kDNA, and ITS1) and sequencing. RESULTS : PCR revealed trypanosomatid-positive samples from Nyssomyia whitmani and Evandromyia evandroi, which were negative by kDNA and ITS1 Leishmania-specific PCRs. DNA sequence analysis of D7 24Sα rRNA amplicons indicated the occurrence of Blastocrithidia sp. and Trypanosoma sp. in Nyssomyia whitmani and Evandromyia evandroi, respectively. CONCLUSIONS : Two trypanosomatid species other than Leishmania sp. were found to circulate in sand flies in Central Brazil.