Application of eDNA metabarcoding for detecting myxozoan communities in natural and aquaculture environments in Brazil

• Grant number: 25/04397-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: October 01, 2025
• End date: September 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Antonio Augusto Mendes Maia
• Grantee: Caroline Munhoz Meira
• Supervisor: Stephen Douglas Atkinson
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Oregon State University (OSU), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 23/15107-7 - Diversity and parasite-host interactions of myxozoan parasites of Bryconidae fish, BP.DR

Abstract

Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding has emerged as an effective tool for identifying species diversity across various animal taxa, including parasitic organisms. Myxozoans are a highly diverse group of cnidarian endoparasites, comprising approximately 2,600 species that infect various tissues and organs of vertebrates, primarily fish, with their biodiversity still underexplored. Aquatic eDNA metabarcoding represents a promising, non-invasive approach to assessing myxozoan diversity in specific habitats. This method is critical not only for characterizing myxozoan communities but also for informing the development of disease management strategies in aquaculture systems. The present study aims to standardize and validate eDNA metabarcoding for freshwater ecosystems by comparing myxozoan communities in aquaculture systems and natural environments in Brazil. Field sampling in natural habitats will focus on the Mogi River near Pirassununga, São Paulo, Brazil. Comparatively, aquaculture sampling will occur at a fish farm in Mogi Mirim, São Paulo, which commercially rears fish species naturally found in the Mogi River. This approach seeks to establish eDNA metabarcoding as a robust, sensitive, and non-invasive tool for detecting myxozoan biodiversity in different aquatic systems. Such advancements could hold significant potential for monitoring disease agents that threaten economically valuable fish species in aquaculture.