Bacterial and Viral Diversity of Didelphid Opossums from Brazil

• Published in: EcoHealth Vol. 20; no. 4; pp. 362 - 369
• Main Authors: Cardia Caserta, Leonardo, Mansano do Nascimento, Gabriela, Joshi, Lok Raj, Mausbach Simão, Raphael, Miller, Michael E., Nunes Felippe, Paulo A., Diel, Diego G., Weis Arns, Clarice
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-12-2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animal Ecology; Bacteria; Ecosystems; Environmental Health; Habitat fragmentation; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Microbiology; Microbiomes; Pathogens; Public Health; Short Communication; Water and Health; Zoonoses; Brazil; Virus; Forest fragments; Metagenomics; Next-generation sequencing; Marsupials; Brazil; Opossum; Didelphis; Microbiome
• ISSN: 1612-9202; 1612-9210
• DOI: 10.1007/s10393-023-01667-2

Marsupials belonging to the
Didelphis
genus are widely distributed in the American Continent, and
Didelphis albiventris
and
Didelphis aurita
, are common in all of their areas of distribution in Brazil. Here we describe the bacterial and viral diversity of samples from opossums captured in three forest fragments in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Microbiomes from the same body site were more similar across species and sampling sites while oral swabs presented higher bacterial diversity than rectal swabs. We also identified sequences related to bacterial species involved in zoonotic diseases. The detection of pathogens in such abundant mammal species warns for the possibility of emergence in other species.