Locally Transmitted in a Domestic Llama () in a Rural Area of Greater New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.

-associated megaesophagus was diagnosed in a domestic Louisiana-born llama with no significant travel history. The llama resided in the same rural area of greater New Orleans, Louisiana, where the first human autochthonous case of Chagas disease was identified in the state. Venous blood from the llama tested positive for kinetoplastid DNA by conventional PCR.

Interactions among Triatoma sanguisuga blood feeding sources, gut microbiota and Trypanosoma cruzi diversity in southern Louisiana.

Integrating how biodiversity and infectious disease dynamics are linked at multiple levels and scales is highly challenging. Chagas disease is a vector-borne disease, with specificities of the triatomine vectors and Trypanosoma cruzi parasite life histories resulting in a complex multihost and multistrain life cycle. Here, we tested the hypothesis that T.

Raccoons As an Important Reservoir for : A Prevalence Study from Two Metropolitan Areas in Louisiana.

Raccoons are an important reservoir for infection, having been reported to maintain a high and lengthy parasitemia. Although raccoon populations have historically been abundant in Louisiana, the prevalence rate of infection in raccoons in this state is unknown. Here, we tested raccoon tissues from two urban areas in Louisiana, namely Orleans Parish (OP) and East Baton Rouge Parish (EBRP), to investigate prevalence in these areas using direct detection through polymerase chain reaction.

Deep sequencing reveals multiclonality and new discrete typing units of Trypanosoma cruzi in rodents from the southern United States.

Background/purpose: The parasitic protozoa Trypanosoma cruzi, is widely distributed throughout the Americas. We explored the nature of T. cruzi infection in small rodents from New Orleans (LA, USA), an enzootic region of the parasite in North America.