Molecular detection of Mansonella mariae incriminates Simulium oyapockense as a potentially important bridge vector for Amazon-region zoonoses

Ribosomal, mitochondrial and bacterial (Wolbachia) reference sequences for Dipetalonema gracile obtained from a wild pied tamarin (Saguinus bicolor) host in Manaus, Brazil

“…Most molecular filarial parasite detection and identification in both their vertebrate and arthropod hosts is therefore typically done using PCR and Sanger sequence of filarial parasite specific DNA sequences (Simonsen et al 2014;Alhassan et al 2015;. This means that the success in identifying filarial parasites usually depends on the existence of publicly available reference sequences to match those recovered from a disease vector or host tissue sample such as blood (Alhassan et al 2015;Silva et al 2022). Although these PCR assays almost always amplify ribosomal or mitochondrial DNA, a wide variety of sequences within these regions are targeted, meaning that even when mtDNA or rDNA reference sequences for a filarial parasite exist in a database, it will not be possible to use them in a PCR assay for identification of an unknown parasite if the assay has not targeted the same region as the reference sequence (Alhassan et al 2015).…”

“…Recent surveys performed within the urban-forest interface zones of Manaus have found a diverse range of biting insects, but have not yet definitively incriminated any as a zoonotic disease bridge vector (Hendy et al 2020a;Hendy et al 2020b). Because filarial parasites usually cause chronic and persistent blood parasitaemias in their vertebrate hosts, they can often be detected in disease vectors, even when the vector is not a competent host for the parasite (Shelley et al 1994;Czajka et al 2012;Czajka et al 2014;Simonsen et al 2014;Manoj et al 2021;Silva et al 2022;). Because filarial parasites typically have limited host ranges, their detection in biting arthropods can and has been used to infer feeding preferences and, in this way, incriminate potential zoonotic disease bridge vectors (Garms and Voelker 1969;Lefoulon et al 2015;Crainey et al 2017a;Silva et al 2022).…”

“…Because filarial parasites usually cause chronic and persistent blood parasitaemias in their vertebrate hosts, they can often be detected in disease vectors, even when the vector is not a competent host for the parasite (Shelley et al 1994;Czajka et al 2012;Czajka et al 2014;Simonsen et al 2014;Manoj et al 2021;Silva et al 2022;). Because filarial parasites typically have limited host ranges, their detection in biting arthropods can and has been used to infer feeding preferences and, in this way, incriminate potential zoonotic disease bridge vectors (Garms and Voelker 1969;Lefoulon et al 2015;Crainey et al 2017a;Silva et al 2022). Although the extent to which feeding preferences have been inferred from filarial parasites has historically been limited by how difficult it is to morphologically identify the filarial larvae found in arthropod vectors, the potential of such bridge-vector-incriminating approaches has been demonstrated by the recent application of these molecular tools (Garms and Voelker 1969;Czajka et al 2012;Czajka et al 2014;Manoj et al 2021;Silva et al 2022).…”

“…Because filarial parasites typically have limited host ranges, their detection in biting arthropods can and has been used to infer feeding preferences and, in this way, incriminate potential zoonotic disease bridge vectors (Garms and Voelker 1969;Lefoulon et al 2015;Crainey et al 2017a;Silva et al 2022). Although the extent to which feeding preferences have been inferred from filarial parasites has historically been limited by how difficult it is to morphologically identify the filarial larvae found in arthropod vectors, the potential of such bridge-vector-incriminating approaches has been demonstrated by the recent application of these molecular tools (Garms and Voelker 1969;Czajka et al 2012;Czajka et al 2014;Manoj et al 2021;Silva et al 2022). The identification of zoonotic filarial parasites in arthropod disease vectors could, therefore, prove extremely helpful in identifying which arthropod species are the most likely to be involved in a zoonotic disease outbreak within Manaus and indeed beyond (Silva et al 2022).…”

Dirofilaria immitis is endemic in rural areas of the Brazilian Amazonas state capital, Manaus

“…Although non-human primate filarial parasites have been recently recorded in the state of Amazonas and indeed Manaus, as of yet, there have not been reports of these parasites, or indeed D. immitis parasites, causing disease in humans ( Silva et al, 2022 ; Costa et al, 2023 ). In Pará state (Amazonas state´s eastern neighbor, which contains a similar Amazon-region rainforest ecology), however, there have been reports of zoonotic filarial parasites causing ocular infections ( Bain et al, 2011 ; Otranto et al, 2011 ).…”