Eco-epidemiology of infectious diseases in landscapes of the Amazon Region under the effect of deforestation: implications for one health

Abstract

Anthropogenic movements result in modifications of the wild natural habitat, such as the destruction of forest areas, the introduction of domestic animals and the improvising of sanitation conditions. These changes, associated with global warming, can lead to the uncontrolled proliferation and dispersion of arthropod vectors of infectious diseases, such as Malaria, Chagas Disease, Leishmaniasis and Arboviruses. As a result of the diversity of Biomes, these diseases occur regionally, separately or together and will be the object of a study to be carried out in the municipality of Cruzeiro do Sul, in Acre (settlement area of the Amazon region under the effect of deforestation). This project will complement the ongoing study funded by FAPESP (process 2021/06669-6) that investigates the occurrence of parasites that cause Malaria, Leishmaniasis and Chagas Disease in the human and arthropod population, in 30 landscapes in the region, with different deforestation patterns. In this project, the human and arthropod population of the same landscapes of Cruzeiro do Sul will be investigated for the presence of arboviruses and the occurrence of SARS-CoV-2. To complement the eco-epidemiological relationships of infectious agents, samples of domestic and peridomestic animals (dogs, cats, horses, cattle, and goats) will be collected, in which all groups of pathogens included in the Cruzeiro do Sul study will be investigated. The detection of pathogens will be performed by amplification of genomic segments that allow taxonomic identification and investigation of the genetic diversity associated with pathological characteristics of infectious agents, by PCR or RT/PCR, followed by sequencing. For each group of pathogens, the eco-epidemiological and evolutionary relationships will be determined by statistical methods according to the data obtained. The results are intended to contribute to the prevention and control of infectious diseases, in addition to the identification of new infectious agents, vertebrate hosts and arthropod vectors of importance in one health. (AU)