Zoonotic parasites infecting free-living armadillos from Brazil.

Armadillos are specialist diggers and their burrows are used to find food, seek shelter and protect their pups. These burrows can also be shared with dozens of vertebrate and invertebrate species and; consequently, their parasites including the zoonotics. The aim of this study was to diagnose the presence of zoonotic parasites in four wild-caught armadillo species from two different Brazilian ecosystems, the Cerrado (Brazilian savanna) and the Pantanal (wetland). The investigated parasites and their correspondent diseases were: Toxoplasma gondii (toxoplasmosis), Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas disease), Leishmania spp., (leishmaniasis), Paracoccidioides brasiliensis (Paracoccidioidomicosis) and Mycobacterium leprae (Hansen's disease). Forty-three free-living armadillos from Pantanal and seven road-killed armadillos from the Cerrado were sampled. Trypanosoma cruzi DTU TcIII were isolated from 2 out of 43 (4.65%) armadillos, including one of them also infected with Trypanosoma rangeli. Antibodies anti-T. gondii were detected in 13 out of 43 (30.2%) armadillos. All seven armadillos from Cerrado tested positive for P. brasiliensis DNA, in the lungs, spleen, liver fragments. Also, by molecular analysis, all 43 individuals were negative for M. leprae and Leishmania spp. Armadillos were infected by T. cruzi, T. rangeli, P. brasiliensis and presented seric antibodies to T. gondii, highlighting the importance of those armadillos could have in the epidemiology of zoonotic parasites.

Infection by Histoplasma capsulatum, Cryptococcus spp. and Paracoccidioides brasiliensis in bats collected in urban areas.

Epidemiological studies on endemic mycosis can be improved using molecular biology techniques to elucidate the role of bats as reservoirs and vectors of pathogenic fungi for infection of other animals and humans. The objective of this study was to explore the presence of Histoplasma capsulatum, Cryptococcus spp. and Paracoccidioides brasiliensis in insectivorous, frugivorous and nectarivorous bats collected in urban areas. We analysed 172 bats collected by the Epidemiological Surveillance Agency in 12 municipalities of the Midwest region of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Spleen, liver, intestine and lung samples were subjected to microbiological culture and nested PCR analyses. Prevalence of H. capsulatum infection was 8.1% (14/172), with one bat found to be positive by fungal culturing, 12 positive by nested PCR and one positive by both methods. Two insectivorous bats were found positive by nested PCR for Cryptococcus spp., one in the spleen and the other in the spleen and lung. Two insectivorous bats showed natural infection by P. brasiliensis, in the spleen of one bat and the spleen and liver of the other. Our results reinforce the importance of bats as fungal dispersers in urban environments and the importance of constant epidemiologic surveillance because these synanthropic animals are in close contact with humans and animals.

Paracoccidioides brasiliensis: phylogenetic and ecological aspects.

The knowledge on the biological aspects of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis has evolved greatly since the first description of the disease in 1908. From the pioneers, who were able to clearly demonstrate the fungal nature of the agent, to the recent genomic era, important advances have been achieved. P. brasiliensis is a true fungus, belonging to the Ascomycetous Division, although its sexual phase has not been demonstrated morphologically. A better understanding of the fundamental aspects of the agent, especially its phylogeny and evolutionary history, will provide us with valuable insights allowing a better comprehension of the disease and our capacity to deal with the problem. Concerning the fungus's ecology, although some progress had been observed, the ecological niche of the pathogen has not been determined yet. The aim of the present review is to focus on the biological aspects of P. brasiliensis from an evolutionary point of view, addressing the fungus's phylogenetic aspects, in those special points that might be relevant for the pathogen/host interactions, the biological forces that have been acting on its origin and maintenance of virulence, as well as in determining the fungus's ecology and epidemiology.

Pythium insidiosum: relato do primeiro caso de infecção humana no Brasil / Pythium insidiosum: report of the first case of human infection in Brazil

A pitiose é causada por microorganismo aquático, fungo-símile, o Pythium insidiosum, patógeno de homens e animais. Observou-se um paciente com úlcera fagedênica no membro inferior, com exame anatomopatológico sugestivo de zigomicose, pouco sensível à terapêutica antifúngica, obtendo-se cura por meio de ampla exérese. A comprovação etiológica resultou de métodos moleculares, com amplificação e seqüenciamento de DNA de organismo isolado em ágar Sabouraud, observando-se 100 por cento de analogia com seqüências de P. insidiosum depositadas no GenBank.

Pythiosis is caused by an aquatic fungus-like organism, Pythium insidiosum, pathogenic to men and animals. A patient with a phagedenic ulcer on the leg is reported. Histopathological examination was suggestive of zygomycosis, response to antifungal drugs was poor and cure was obtained by means of wide surgical excision. Etiologic diagnosis was confirmed by molecular amplification and DNA sequencing of colonies isolated in Sabouraud agar. After BLAST analysis, the sequence showed 100 percent identity with those of P. insidiosum deposited on the GenBank.

Phylogenetic and evolutionary aspects of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis reveal a long coexistence with animal hosts that explain several biological features of the pathogen.

The habitat of the mycelial saprobic form of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis, which produces the infectious propagula, has not been determined and has proven difficult for mycologists to describe. The fungus has been rarely isolated from the environment, the disease has a prolonged latency period and no outbreaks have been reported. These facts have precluded the adoption of preventive measures to avoid infection. The confirmation of natural infections in nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) with P. brasiliensis, in high frequency and wide geographic distribution, has opened new avenues for the study and understanding of its ecology. Armadillos belong to the order Xenarthra, which has existed in South America ever since the Paleocene Era (65 million years ago), when the South American subcontinent was still a detached land, before the consolidation of what is now known as the American continent. On the other hand, strong molecular evidence suggests that P. brasiliensis and other dimorphic pathogenic fungi--such as Blastomyces dermatitidis, Coccidioides immitis and Histoplasma capsulatum--belong to the family Onygenaceae sensu lato (order Onygenales, Ascomycota), which appeared around 150 million years ago. P. brasiliensis ecology and relation to its human host are probably linked to the fungal evolutionary past, especially its long coexistence with and adaptation to animal hosts other than Homo sapiens, of earlier origin. Instead of being a blind alley, the meaning of parasitism for dimorphic pathogenic fungi should be considered as an open two-way avenue, in which the fungus may return to the environment, therefore contributing to preserve its teleomorphic (sexual) and anamorphic (asexual) forms in a defined and protected natural habitat.