Altitudinal variation of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis on continental and insular amphibians

• Grant number: 20/02994-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: July 01, 2020
• End date: April 11, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Luis Felipe de Toledo Ramos Pereira
• Grantee: Julia Renata Ernetti
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 16/25358-3 - The chytrid fungus: from its origins to its consequences, AP.TEM
• Associated scholarship(s): 22/07125-2 - Linking spatiotemporal patterns of host-microbiome interactions to disease resistance in Atlantic Forest frogs, BE.EP.DR

Abstract

Chytridiomycosis, an infectious disease caused by the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is associated with declines and extinctions of amphibians worldwide. Different factors contribute to the emergence of the pathogen in nature. The altitude and availability of habitat can determine the structure of host communities, and directly influence the pathogen dynamics. The dilution effect hypothesis predicts that a high host diversity community tends to show a reduction in disease levels. Thus, based on the premise of dilution effect, it is expected that areas with increasing elevation show a pattern of decreased richness, and in habitats that support less structured communities, such as islands, we should observe an amplifying of disease effect. This thesis project aims to investigate the effects of amphibian diversity on Bd infection rates in elevational gradients of Atlantic Forest island and continental environments. In addition, we seek to assess the virulence of infection in different Bd isolates, and better understand how seasonality influences the pathogen's prevalence and infection patterns in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. This work should directly contribute to the understanding of the Bd patterns on neotropical anuran communities, and will provide important information on the emergence and distribution of the pathogen in nature, essential for the development of future conservation strategies. (AU)

Scientific publications

(6)

(The scientific publications listed on this page originate from the Web of Science or SciELO databases. Their authors have cited FAPESP grant or fellowship project numbers awarded to Principal Investigators or Fellowship Recipients, whether or not they are among the authors. This information is collected automatically and retrieved directly from those bibliometric databases.)

DELAZERI, FRANCIELI; ERNETTI, JULIA R.; DE BASTIANI, VELUMA I. M.; LINGNAU, RODRIGO; TOLEDO, LUIS FELIPE; LUCAS, ELAINE M.. Forest cover influences chytrid infections in populations of Boana curupi, a threatened treefrog of south Brazil. DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS, v. 144, p. 133-142, 2021. (20/02994-7, 16/25358-3, 19/18335-5)

ERNETTI, JULIA R.; PRADO, JOELMA S.; RUGGERI, JOICE; BRASILEIRO, CINTHIA A.; TOLEDO, LUIS FELIPE. Chytrid fungus in threatened Brazilian amphibians: A focus on island populations. JOURNAL FOR NATURE CONSERVATION, v. 87, p. 8-pg., 2025-09-01. (19/18335-5, 20/02994-7, 22/11096-8, 20/12866-6)

ERNETTI, JULIA R.; PRADO, JOELMA S.; TOLEDO, LUIS FELIPE. Host life stage susceptibility to the chytrid fungus in a Neotropical torrent frog. FUNGAL BIOLOGY, v. 129, n. 2, p. 8-pg., 2025-04-01. (22/11096-8, 16/25358-3, 20/02994-7, 19/18335-5)

ERNETTI, JULIA R.; LOPES, CARLA MARTINS; RIBEIRO, LUISA P.; DE BASTIANI, VELUMA I. M.; LUCAS, ELAINE M.; TOLEDO, LUIS FELIPE. Environmental DNA survey does not detect additional populations of a critically endangered leaf frog, but reveal another threat to the species. JOURNAL FOR NATURE CONSERVATION, v. 78, p. 8-pg., 2024-02-14. (16/25358-3, 18/23622-0, 20/02994-7)

DENA, SIMONE; ZORNOSA-TORRES, CAMILA; BOVOLON, JOAO PEDRO; PAIVA, FERNANDA; MACHADO, THAYNARA MENDES; DO PRADO, JOELMA SANTOS; ERNETTI, JULIA R.; CARRASCO-MEDINA, ANDRES SANTIAGO; DE ASSIS, CLODOALDO LOPES; MARINHO, RAYANNE VAZ DE MELLO; et al. Audiovisual collections safeguard undescribed calls: description of anuran vocalisations based on recordings from a public sound library. BIOACOUSTICS-THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SOUND AND ITS RECORDING, v. 33, n. 5, p. 32-pg., 2024-08-05. (20/02994-7, 16/25358-3, 22/08274-1, 22/11096-8)

TOLEDO, LUIS FELIPE; BOTELHO, LUCAS MACHADO; CARRASCO-MEDINA, ANDRES SANTIAGO; GRAY, JAIMI A.; ERNETTI, JULIA R.; GAMA, JOANA MOURA; LYRA, MARIANA LUCIO; BLACKBURN, DAVID C.; NUNES, IVAN; MUSCAT, EDELCIO. Among the world's smallest vertebrates: a new miniaturized flea-toad (Brachycephalidae) from the Atlantic rainforest. PeerJ, v. 12, p. 27-pg., 2024-10-25. (20/02994-7, 22/11096-8)