Publications by authors named "B de Thoisy"
Ant-eating mammals represent a textbook example of convergent evolution. Among them, anteaters and pangolins exhibit the most extreme convergent phenotypes with complete tooth loss, elongated skulls, protruding tongues, and hypertrophied salivary glands producing large amounts of saliva. However, comparative genomic analyses have shown that anteaters and pangolins differ in their chitinase acidic gene (CHIA) repertoires, which potentially degrade the chitinous exoskeletons of ingested ants and termites.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPathogens transmitted by mosquitoes (Diptera, Culicidae) in sylvatic or urban cycles involve wild or domestic animals and humans, driven by various mosquito species with distinct host preferences. Understanding mosquito-host associations is crucial for ecological insights and pathogen surveillance. In this study, we analyzed mosquito blood meals from coastal French Guiana by amplifying and sequencing host DNA from blood-fed females.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFatal case of imported visceral leishmaniasis in a dog caused by Leishmania infantum in French Guiana.
Vet Parasitol Reg Stud Reports
October 2024
Article Synopsis
- - The report discusses a case of fatal canine visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in a 2-year-old pug from Brazil, which was imported to French Guiana, a region not typically associated with this disease.
- - The dog initially showed a skin issue that healed, but later developed serious symptoms, leading to suspicion of VL, which was confirmed posthumously by testing for L. infantum.
- - This case highlights the rarity of canine VL in French Guiana and suggests a need for increased local surveillance to monitor potential transmission routes of the parasite.
Article Synopsis
- The study focused on tick-borne Apicomplexa parasites that cause diseases like babesiosis and theileriosis in wildlife and livestock.
- Researchers collected and analyzed a diverse sample of 1161 specimens, including wild mammals and ticks from the Amazon rainforest in French Guiana.
- They identified eight genovariants of various parasites, suggesting both known and potentially new species, with infections primarily detected in wild mammals rather than birds, and noted unique transmission patterns in South America.