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<OL> <LI> Employing single-gene and genomic approaches, improve diagnosis of
protists and nematodes that parasitize major food animals and that facilitate
establishment, internalization, and survival of bacterial pathogens in produce. <BR> <BR>
Subobjective A: better characterize the molecular epidemiology of parasitic
coccidia and trichinella.
<BR> <BR>
Subobjective B: better characterize those bacterophagous eukaryotic microbes
that may convey and help establish in produce pathogenic bacteria.<BR> <BR>
<LI>Develop a molecular phylogeny of coccidia in fish in order to better
define their potential risk to food safety and security, and in order to better
understand the relationship between Eimeriidae (including the agents of avian
coccidiosis) and the Sarcocystidae (including the agent of human toxoplasmosis).
<LI> Better define the historical and ongoing interactions among wildlife
and livest
Approach: Several genes will be sequenced from parasites obtained from a wide array of animals,
both domesticated and wild. These will be compared to each other, and to sequences
obtained from human beings, in order to define the diversity and epidemiology of
these parasite species. Homologues will be characterized for genes whose global
variation has already begun to be studied in T. gondii, including the Intergenic
Spacer sequence between rRNA genes, beta tubulin introns, and others.
<p>Characterization of microsatellite alleles will be considered as a second approach
which, although requiring a greater investment of time and resources, shuld provide
greater population genetic resolution than is possible with current loci.