MOLECULAR DETECTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF VECTOR-BORNE AGENTS IN WILD MAMMALS AND ASSOCIATED ECTOPARASITES FROM THE BRAZILIAN CAATINGA

• Grant number: 24/17190-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: February 01, 2025
• End date: July 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Marcos Rogério André
• Grantee: Daniel Antônio Braga Lee
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Jaboticabal. Jaboticabal , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Although a growing number of studies have been carried out in Brazil aimed at identifying and characterizing vector-borne agents in wild mammals and associated hematophagous ectoparasites, few studies have been developed in the Brazilian Caatinga. Due to its importance for One Health, bacteria from the families Anaplasmataceae, Bartonellaceae, and Mycoplasmataceae, as well as protozoa of the order Piroplasmida and the genus Hepatozoon, have been the subject of molecular studies to identify reservoirs and wild hosts of these agents. This project aims to investigate the occurrence and molecularly characterize vector-borne agents in mammals of the orders Carnivora, Didelphimorphia, and Rodentia, and associated ectoparasites in a Caatinga preservation area in the state of Sergipe, northeastern Brazil. For this purpose, blood and spleen samples from rodents, whole blood from marsupials and carnivores, and ectoparasites from all sampled species will be collected. The samples will undergo DNA extraction, PCR assays for mammalian (gapdh) and arthropod (cox-1, 16S rRNA, and 18S rRNA) endogenous genes, and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR), conventional PCR (cPCR), and nested PCR (nPCR) assays based on various gene regions for the molecular detection and characterization of Anaplasmataceae, Bartonellaceae, Mycoplasmataceae, Piroplasmida, and Hepatozoon spp. The amplicons will be purified, sequenced, and subjected to phylogenetic inferences. Additionally, whole blood samples from the animals will be subjected to liquid pre-enrichment culture and seeding on chocolate agar for Bartonella spp. isolation. Suspected colonies will be confirmed molecularly by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and subsequently have their complete genome sequenced through Illumina NovaSeq and Nanopore platforms for species characterization. Additionally, any newly isolated species will be characterized morphologically (through scanning electron microscopy), metabolically, and biochemically. This study will contribute to expanding the knowledge about vector-borne agents circulating among wild mammals and associated ectoparasites in the Caatinga of northeastern Sergipe.