Molecular detection of prepatent Schistosoma mansoni infection in Biomphalaria glabrata snail vectors

Approximately 240 million people worldwide are infected by Schistosoma. In Brazil, one of the main intermediate hosts of this parasite is Biomphalaria glabrata snails. The early detection of larval stages in intermediate hosts is an important challenge to public health, but it also represents an opportunity as a new alternative to indicate earlier natural infections before cercariae differentiation and emergence. In this context, we demonstrated that PCR amplification of a 28S gene fragment from the parasite does demonstrate S. mansoni infection in snails 14 days post infection. This conventional polymerase chain reaction amplified clear bands and was able to detect parasitic infection in the intermediate host B. glabrata under experimental conditions. However, we reinforce that this approach requires deeper investigations and further comparisons to confirm its specificity and sensitivity in earlier time points after miracidia infection. This approach has relevant potential as an effective molecular-based strategy for the monitoring of schistosomiasis transmission

Re-assessing thermal response of schistosomiasis transmission risk: Evidence for a higher thermal optimum than previously predicted

The geographical range of schistosomiasis is affected by the ecology of schistosome parasites and their obligate host snails, including their response to temperature. Previous models predicted schistosomiasis’ thermal optimum at 21.7°C, which is not compatible with the temperature in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) regions where schistosomiasis is hyperendemic. We performed an extensive literature search for empirical data on the effect of temperature on physiological and epidemiological parameters regulating the free-living stages of S. mansoni and S. haematobium and their obligate host snails, i.e., Biomphalaria spp. and Bulinus spp., respectively. We derived nonlinear thermal responses fitted on these data to parameterize a mechanistic, process-based model of schistosomiasis. We then re-cast the basic reproduction number and the prevalence of schistosome infection as functions of temperature. We found that the thermal optima for transmission of S. mansoni and S. haematobium range between 23.1–27.3°C and 23.6–27.9°C (95% CI) respectively. We also found that the thermal optimum shifts toward higher temperatures as the human water contact rate increases with temperature. Our findings align with an extensive dataset of schistosomiasis prevalence in SSA. The refined nonlinear thermal-response model developed here suggests a more suitable current climate and a greater risk of increased transmission with future warming for more than half of the schistosomiasis suitable regions with mean annual temperature below the thermal optimum

ITS2 variability of Biomphalaria (Mollusca, Planorbidae) species from the Paranapanema Valley (São Paulo State, Brazil): diversity patterns, population structure, and phylogenetic relationships

The ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) has been shown to be a useful genetic marker for species identification and phylogenetic reconstruction in the genus of freshwater snails Biomphalaria (Preston 1910). Additionally, ITS2 studies in Biomphalaria have uncovered significant intra-specific genetic variability suggesting the presence of cryptic species complexes. We obtained ITS2 sequences for the Biomphalaria species B. glabrata, B. tenagophila, B. occidentalis and B. peregrina from the Paranapanema Valley (São Paulo State, Brazil) and compared them with a comprehensive set of published Biomphalaria ITS2 sequences using Bayesian inference of phylogeny. Analysis of the resulting trees showed that the newly obtained B. glabrata sequences did not cluster with those from other Brazilian localities and that sub-structuring occurred among Brazilian B. tenagophila populations. Moreover, although ITS2 sequences seem to indicate clear genetic differentiation within both B. glabrata and B. tenagophila, evidence in support of the occurrence of cryptic species is more compelling for the latter. We discuss the significance and implications of the detected patterns of ITS2 variability for taxonomic studies in Biomphalaria

Effect of self-fertilization on Biomphalaria tenagophila (Orbigny, 1835) (Pulmonata: Planorbidae)

Biomphalaria tenagophila is a simultaneous hermaphrodite freshwater snail, which can breed by self and cross-fertilization. It is, therefore, well suited for studying reproduction as an evolutive strategy. Several characteristics (shell size and age at sexual maturity, egg fecundity and fertility) were analyzed in four consecutive self-fertilized generations and compared to cross-fertilized individuals. The reproductive parameters were similar in the two groups. Shell size was significantly greater in the fourth self-fertilized generation than in the cross-fertilized individuals