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. 2023 Nov 13:118:e230088.
doi: 10.1590/0074-02760230088. eCollection 2023.

Zoonotic Giardia duodenalis assemblage A in northern sloth from Brazilian Amazon

Lisiane Lappe Dos Reis  1   2 , Lirna Salvioni Silva de Souza  1 , Francisco Carlos de Oliveira Braga  1 , Dayane Costa de Souza Lima  1 , Natália Aparecida de Souza Lima  3 , Jessica da Silva Padinha  1 , Alessandra Ferreira Dales Nava  4 , Ana Carolina Paulo Vicente  5
Affiliations

Zoonotic Giardia duodenalis assemblage A in northern sloth from Brazilian Amazon

Lisiane Lappe Dos Reis et al. Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz. .

Abstract

Background: The parasite Giardia duodenalis infects a wide range of vertebrate hosts, including domestic and wild animals as well as humans. Giardia is genotyped into eight assemblages (A-H). Zoonotic assemblages A and B have already been identified in humans and wild and domestic animals (non-human primates and cats) from Brazilian Amazon and in the world. Due to its zoonotic/zooanthroponotic nature, surveillance initiatives and the definition of Giardia assemblages are important in order to characterise the epidemiological scenario and to implement further control measures.

Objectives: Determine assemblages of G. duodenalis in sloths from the Brazilian Amazon Region.

Methods: Faecal parasitological examination of sloths from Amazonas State. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting the beta giardin (BG), and genes from multilocus sequence typing (MLST) scheme, amplicon sequencing and phylogenetic analysis.

Findings: Here, we identified, by microscopy, Giardia in two northern sloths (Bradypus tridactylus). These two samples were submitted to molecular assays and it was revealed that both were infected by G. duodenalis assemblage A. Phylogenetic analysis showed that they belong to assemblage A within sequences from humans and wild and domestic animals.

Conclusion: Therefore, besides showing, by the first time, the current presence of this parasite in sloths, our findings reveals that this wild animal species would be part of the zoonotic/zooanthroponotic scenario of this parasite in the Brazilian Amazon.

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Figures

Fig. 1:
Fig. 1:. northern sloth (Bradyprus tridactylus) positive to Giardia duodenalis assemblage A.
Fig. 2:
Fig. 2:. maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree based on Giardia duodenalis beta giardin (BG) (466 bp). Support values for the clades UFBoot and Shimodaira-Hasegawa approximate likelihood ratio test (SH-aLRT) are presented at the left of the nodes. Both BG sloth sequences are in bold. Hs: Homo sapiens.
Fig. 3:
Fig. 3:. maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree based on concatenated Giardia duodenalis beta giardin (BG), CID1 and DIS3 sequences (1750 bp). Support values for the clades UFBoot and Shimodaira-Hasegawa approximate likelihood ratio test (SH-aLRT) are presented at the left of the nodes. Both sloth sequences are label.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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