Antimicrobial resistance of Enterobacteriales in bats (Chiroptera, Mammalia)

• Grant number: 21/12426-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: March 31, 2022
• End date: July 30, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Marcos Bryan Heinemann
• Grantee: Juliana Maria Nunes Batista
• Supervisor: Daniel Becker
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Oklahoma (OU), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 20/14401-0 - Detection of Leptospira spp., bacterial and metagenomic enteropathogens in bats (Chiroptera, Mammalia) from the urban region of São Paulo, SP, Brazil, BP.MS

Abstract

The order Chiroptera is the second largest order of mammals in number of species,which contain over 1400 species distributed in more than 200 genera. Dueto these animals' high mobility through flight during feeding, mating, and seasonal migrations; their often-large colony size, long life expectancy, and ability to coexist among urban populations, bats are potential hosts of many important zoonotic pathogens.Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing issue in the "One Health" conceptworldwide, obstructing treatment of bacterial infections and being responsible for estimatedglobal economic cost of $100 trillion USD by 2050 if there are no control measuresBesides, bats have coevolved with the bacterial pathogens they harbor and have thepotential to provide novel insights into the control of bacterial infections in other species. It is equaly important to elucidate the negative impact of anthropogenically derived bacteria leading diseases in the wildlife (e.g., zooanthroponosis). There is limited research on the topic involving bats, expressing the need of more studies.This study will characterize the presence and strain diversity of zoonotic antimicrobial-resistant bacteria on fecal samples of wild bats captured in Belize. The samples must comprehend five dietary guilds: frugivores, omnivores, insectivores,carnivores/piscivores, and sanguivores, in order to predict which diets might facilitate moreexposure to AMR bacteria (e.g., hematophagous species feeding on livestock, insectivorousspecies feeding near cattle ponds, piscivores feeding on aquatic resources polluted withwastewater).The aim of this project is to characterize antimicrobial resistance profile diversity to bacterialpathogens linked to humans in wild bats in the Neotropics, where bats are in close contactwith agricultural activities that could expose them to AMR bacteria.The expected outcomes are understanding the link between human and domestic animals AMR and bats. Describe how bats have the potential to contribute on the identification of the cycle and impact of AMR and antimicrobial-resistant bacteria in the wildlife.