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Occurrence of Free-Living Amoebae in Non-Human Primate Gut
oleh: Igor Rodrigues Cardoso, Clezia Siqueira de Lima, Rhagner Bonono dos Reis, Ana Cristina Araujo Pinto, Thalita Pissinatti, Tatiana Kugelmeier, Sócrates Fraga da Costa Neto, Fabio Alves da Silva, Helena Lúcia Carneiro Santos
Format: | Article |
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Diterbitkan: | MDPI AG 2024-05-01 |
Deskripsi
The gut microbiome reflects health and predicts possible disease in hosts. A holistic view of this community is needed, focusing on identifying species and dissecting how species interact with their host and each other, regardless of whether their presence is beneficial, inconsequential, or detrimental. The distribution of gut-associated eukaryotes within and across non-human primates is likely driven by host behavior and ecology. To ascertain the existence of free-living amoebae (FLA) in the gut of wild and captive non-human primates, 101 stool samples were collected and submitted to culture-dependent microscopy examination and DNA sequencing. Free-living amoebae were detected in 45.4% (46/101) of fecal samples analyzed, and their morphological characteristics matched those of <i>Acanthamoeba</i> spp., <i>Vermamoeba</i> spp., heterolobosean amoeboflagellates and fan-shaped amoebae of the family Vannellidae. Sequence analysis of the PCR products revealed that the suspected amoebae are highly homologous (99% identity and 100% query coverage) with <i>Acanthamoeba</i> T4 genotype and <i>Vermamoeba vermiformis</i> amoebae. The results showed a great diversity of amoebae in the non-human primate’s microbiome, which may pose a potential risk to the health of NHPs. To our knowledge, this is the first report of free-living amoebae in non-human primates that are naturally infected. However, it is unknown whether gut-borne amoebae exploit a viable ecological niche or are simply transient residents in the gut.