Viruses of trypanosomatids are now being extensively studied because of their diversity and the roles they play in flagellates' biology. Among the most prominent examples are leishmaniaviruses implicated in pathogenesis of Leishmania parasites. Here, we present a historical overview of this field, starting with early reports of virus-like particles on electron microphotographs, and culminating in detailed molecular descriptions of viruses obtained using modern next generation sequencing-based techniques. Because of their diversity, different life cycle strategies and host specificity, we believe that trypanosomatids are a fertile ground for further explorations to better understand viral evolution, routes of transitions, and molecular mechanisms of adaptation to different hosts.

Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Fiocruz Instituto Oswaldo Cruz Laboratório de Estudos Integrados em Protozoologia Coleção de Protozoários Rio de Janeiro RJ Brasil

University of Ostrava Faculty of Science Life Science Research Centre Ostrava Czech Republic

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