Active surveillance for influenza virus and coronavirus infection in Antarctic birds and mammals in environmental fecal samples, South Shetland Islands.

Numerous Antarctic species are recognized as reservoirs for various pathogens, and their migratory behavior allows them to reach the Brazilian coast, potentially contributing to the emergence and circulation of new infectious diseases. To address the potential zoonotic risks, we conducted surveillance of influenza A virus (IAV) and coronaviruses (CoVs) in the Antarctic Peninsula, specifically focusing on different bird and mammal species in the region. During the summer of 2021/2022, as part of the Brazilian Antarctic Expedition, we collected and examined a total of 315 fecal samples to target these respiratory viruses.

In the Dawn of an Early Invasion: No Genetic Diversity of in Ecuador?

The nematode has been reported worldwide. However, some basic questions remain unanswered about . in Ecuador: (1) Was the invasion of .

MORPHOLOGICAL AND GENETIC CHARACTERIZATION OF DIDELPHONEMA LONGISPICULATA (NEMATODA: SPIRUROIDEA) IN THE BLACK-EARED OPOSSUM DIDELPHIS MARSUPIALIS.

Didelphonema longispiculata (Hill, 1939), a gastric nematode parasite of the black-eared opossum, Didelphis marsupialis Linnaeus, 1758, collected from 2 municipalities of Mato Grosso state, Brazil, in the ecotone region of the Amazon and Cerrado biomes was analyzed with integrative taxonomy using light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for morphological studies and sequencing of the 18S small subunit ribosomal RNA for phylogenetic inference through maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic inference. Here details of the helminth surface, oral aperture with octagonal border, pseudo- and inter-labia, amphids, external cephalic papillae, 2 dorsal and ventral internal plates distally indented, and stoma with strongly chitinized wall are presented. Caudal male papillae, spicules, female vulva, anus, and caudal tip were detailed using SEM.

New hosts for a snake's helminth: First report of intermediate and definitive hosts naturally infected by (Ascarididae) in the wild.

We wish to report the occurrence of adult nematodes (Ascarididae) naturally infecting a new definitive host, the Fonseca's lancehead (Viperidae), and third-stage larvae of parasitizing a new intermediate host, the montane grass mouse (Cricetidae), both found in the Atlantic Forest of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We elucidated the morphological characteristics of both adults and larvae using light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Taxonomic affinities between larvae and adult worms were assessed using MT-CO1 gene sequences.

First report of the nematode using molluscs as natural intermediate hosts, based on morphology and genetic markers.

The life cycles of many parasitic nematodes include terrestrial gastropods as intermediate hosts. Over the past few decades, a number of cases of parasitism between molluscs and medically-important nematodes have been reported in Brazil, in particular, those involving the invasive giant African gastropod, , and zoonoses caused by the nematodes and , the etiological agents of neuroangiostrongyliasis and abdominal angiostrongyliasis, respectively. In the present study, larvae found infecting , , and , from two localities in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro were characterized using light and scanning electron microscopy, and sequences of the 18S rRNA and MT-CO1 genes.

Triatoma petrocchiae (Hemiptera, Reduviidae, Triatominae): A Chagas disease vector of T. brasiliensis species complex associated to reptiles.

In semi-arid areas of northeastern Brazil, Chagas disease vectors of Triatoma brasiliensis species complex comprise a monophyletic group of kissing bugs that inhabit rock outcrops. Most of them exhibit allopatric or parapatric distribution; the exception is T. petrocchiae, which is found in cohabitation with T.

Infecting Bats in the Southeastern Brazilian Rainforest.

Tick-borne protozoans of the genus are obligate hemoparasites that can infect domestic and wild terrestrial vertebrates. Main hepatozoonosis affects canids and involves mainly and . However, molecular studies revealed the capacity of to infect a wide range of wild mammals.

Angiostrongylus minasensis n. sp.: new species found parasitizing coatis (Nasua nasua) in an urban protected area in Brazil.

Currently, there are 21 species of Angiostrongylus that parasitize the pulmonary or mesenteric arteries of wild and domestic rodents, felids, canids and human. Species of Angiostrongylus have cosmopolitan distribution covering tropical, subtropical and temperate regions. The procyonid Nasua nasua (coati) is a reservoir host for a wide variety of parasites that may be harmful to its populations or may contain etiological agents with zoonotic potential.

New morphological and genetic data of (Diesing, 1851) (Acanthocephala: Archiacanthocephala) in the giant anteater Linnaeus, 1758 (Pilosa: Myrmecophagidae).

(Diesing, 1851) is a parasite of anteaters in South America. Although described by Diesing in 1851, there is still a lack of taxonomic and phylogenetic information regarding this species. In the present study, we redescribe collected from a giant anteater, Linnaeus, 1758, from the Brazilian Cerrado (Savannah) in the State of São Paulo by light and scanning electron microscopy.

Variation in the skull morphometry of four taxonomic units of Thrichomys (Rodentia: Echimyidae), from different Neotropical biomes.

The echimyid rodents of the genus Thrichomys vary considerably in their behavior and feeding ecology, reflecting their occurrence in environments as different as the Caatinga, Cerrado, Pantanal, and Chaco biomes. While the genus was originally classified as monospecific, a number of Thrichomys species have been recognized in recent decades, based on morphometric, cytogenetic, and molecular analyses. While Thrichomys is well studied, the variation found in its cranial morphology is poorly understood, given the taxonomic and ecological complexities of the genus.

Pathogenic Leptospira species are widely disseminated among small mammals in Atlantic Forest biome.

Leptospirosis is a common worldwide bacterial zoonosis and has been studied in One Health approaches. Small mammals are described as the most important maintenance reservoirs of several pathogens in nature, including leptospires. The aim of this study was to identify infection by leptospires among small mammals on the Atlantic forest biome and evaluate their potential as carriers of these spirochetes.

The taxonomic status of the endangered thin-spined porcupine, Chaetomys subspinosus (Olfers, 1818), based on molecular and karyologic data.

Background: The thin-spined porcupine, also known as the bristle-spined rat, Chaetomys subspinosus (Olfers, 1818), the only member of its genus, figures among Brazilian endangered species. In addition to being threatened, it is poorly known, and even its taxonomic status at the family level has long been controversial. The genus Chaetomys was originally regarded as a porcupine in the family Erethizontidae, but some authors classified it as a spiny-rat in the family Echimyidae.