Zoonotic bacteria and microbiome diversity in Brazilian bats: implications for public health

Abstract

The proximity among bats, humans and domestic animals, due to the synanthropic behavior acquired by bats, represents a potential risk for the emergence of new emerging diseases. In relation to bacterial pathogens, studies seeking to detect their presence in bats have been growing lately. However, they are still not categorical about the real risk that these animals may present in the transmission of these pathogens to livestock animals or to humans. In view of this, the aim of this thesis is to contribute to the literature by providing more evidence on the detection of bacterial pathogens in bats using molecular techniques of polymerase chain reaction and sequencing. This thesis is composed of three chapters: (1) Molecular evaluation of zoonotic bacterial pathogens in a diverse bat population from Brazil; (2) Detection of zoonotic bacterial pathogens in bats from vereda ecosystems in the Brazilian Cerrado; and (3) Metataxonomic analysis of rectal samples of synanthropic bats from Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil. So far, DNA from pathogenic bacteria of zoonotic importance such as Brucella spp., Yersinia enterocolitica, Salmonella spp., Bartonella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Coxiella burnetti and Listeria monocytogenes have been identified among the Brazilian bats studied. In addition, sequencing results have identified important genus such as Mycobacterium, Escherichia, Brucella, Clostridium, Klebsiella and others. These findings expand current knowledge about bacterial pathogens and microbial diversity in bats in Brazil and reinforce the need for continued surveillance to better understand their potential role in the ecology of zoonotic diseases and their implications for public health.