ANISAKID PARASITE BIODIVERSITY (NEMATODA: ANISAKIDAE) IN MARINE MAMMALS: MORPHOLOGICAL AND MOLECULAR IDENTIFICATION AND ITS APPLICATIONS.

• Grant number: 11/21963-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: April 01, 2012
• End date: March 31, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Pathology
• Principal Investigator: Jose Luiz Catao Dias
• Grantee: Juliana Marigo
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Parasites of the Anisakidae family (Nematoda) are widely distributed and overall have high prevalences in the marine environment. Animals feeding on fish, especially marine mammals, serve as definitive hosts. Their larvae act also as agents of anisakiasis, an important zoonosis transmitted to humans through the consumption of raw or poorly cooked fish. The importance of this subject and the scarcity of available information have led to an increasing interest and encouragement for the study of the parasitic fauna of marine mammals in Brazil. Identification of these parasites based solely on morphological characteristics is often difficult, especially for larvae. More recently, genetic analyses have recognized new anisakid species which are supported by morphological characteristics, ecological data and specific host-parasite relationships. This project aims to characterize, both morphologically and molecularly, the nematode parasites of cetaceans and pinnipeds in the Southeast and South Brazil, using on samples collected through partnership with other institutions. Whenever possible, after measuring the total length, a middle section of the body of each adult parasite will be cut with a scalpel and used for molecular analyses; the anterior and posterior ends will be used for morphological evaluation. Both nuclear and mitochondrial genetic markers will be used for the molecular characterization. The results obtained here with respect to anisakid biodiversity will allow the investigation on the epidemiological chain of anisakiasis, as well as aspects of phylogeographic distribution of these parasite species and their hosts.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MARIGO, JULIANA; TANIWAKI, SUELI AKEMI; SILVA PINTO, PEDRO LUIZ; SOARES, RODRIGO MARTINS; CATAO-DIAS, JOSE LUIZ. Identificação molecular de larva de Pseudoterranova azarasi em bacalhau (Gadus sp.) vendido para consumo humano no Brasil. Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo, v. 57, n. 6, p. 537-539, NOV-DEC 2015. (11/21963-6)

JACOBUS, KRISTY; MARIGO, JULIANA; GASTAL, SILVIA BAINY; TANIWAKI, SUELI AKEMI; RUOPPOLO, VALERIA; CATAO-DIAS, JOSE LUIZ; TSENG, FLORINA. IDENTIFICATION OF RESPIRATORY AND GASTROINTESTINAL PARASITES OF THREE SPECIES OF PINNIPEDS (ARCTOCEPHALUS AUSTRALIS, ARCTOCEPHALUS GAZELLA, AND OTARIA FLAVESCENS) IN SOUTHERN BRAZIL. Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, v. 47, n. 1, p. 132-140, MAR 2016. (11/21963-6)

JACOBUS, KRISTY; MARIGO, JULIANA; GASTAL, SILVIA BAINY; TANIWAKI, SUELI AKEMI; RUOPPOLO, VALERIA; CATAO-DIAS, JOSE LUIZ; TSENG, FLORINA. IDENTIFICATION OF RESPIRATORY AND GASTROINTESTINAL PARASITES OF THREE SPECIES OF PINNIPEDS (ARCTOCEPHALUS AUSTRALIS, ARCTOCEPHALUS GAZELLA, AND OTARIA FLAVESCENS) IN SOUTHERN BRAZIL. JOURNAL OF ZOO AND WILDLIFE MEDICINE, v. 47, n. 1, p. 9-pg., 2016-03-01. (11/21963-6)