20.500.12556/RUP-21847 Reconstructing the post-glacial spread of the sand fly Phlebotomus mascittii Grassi, 1908 (Diptera: Psychodidae) in Europe Phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Phlebotominae) are the principal vectors of Leishmania spp. (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae). In Central Europe, Phlebotomus mascittii is the predominant species, but largely understudied. To better understand factors driving its current distribution, we infer patterns of genetic diversity by testing for signals of population expansion based on two mitochondrial genes and model current and past climate and habitat suitability for seven post-glacial maximum periods, taking 19 climatic variables into account. Consequently, we elucidate their connections by environmental-geographical network analysis. Most analyzed populations share a main haplotype tracing back to a single glacial maximum refuge area on the Mediterranean coasts of South France, which is supported by network analysis. The rapid range expansion of Ph. mascittii likely started in the early mid-Holocene epoch until today and its spread possibly followed two routes. The first one was through northern France to Germany and then Belgium, and the second across the Ligurian coast through present-day Slovenia to Austria, toward the northern Balkans. Here we present a combined approach to reveal glacial refugia and post-glacial spread of Ph. mascittii and observed discrepancies between the modelled and the current known distribution might reveal yet overlooked populations and potential further spread. Phlebotomus mascittii modeling Europe Phlebotomus mascittii modeliranje Evropa true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2025-10-06 15:14:38 2025-10-06 15:14:40 2025-10-25 03:02:25 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2023 0 0 str. 1-12 article no. ǂ1244 Vol. 6 2023 0000-00-00 NiDoloceno NiDoloceno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 2023-12-08 595.772.1(4) 2399-3642 10.1038/s42003-023-05616-1 251944963 RAZ_Kniha_Edwin_2023.pdf RAZ_Kniha_Edwin_2023.pdf 1 718E43F5CDED5FFED51D21023A496E67 612220e2ad59d06adcd61b8c490d6ab37c6f1a9d58ae4d87583695dd0fe30ccd 32f5eb5d-a2b7-11f0-8f0b-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=31762 https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-023-05616-1 1 9101fe2d-a2b6-11f0-8f0b-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=31761 Fakulteta za matematiko, naravoslovje in informacijske tehnologije 0 0 0