Page 337 - Resúmen - XXV Congreso Latinoamericano de Parasitología - FLAP

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The Longitudinal Cutaneous Microbiome in Cutaneous Leishmaniasis

Gundacker, Nathan ; Suárez, José Antonio ; Sosa, Néstor ; Pascale, Juan Miguel ;
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1
Ábrego, Leyda ; Weeden, Adriana ; Ortiz, Betsi ; Morrow, Casey
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2
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1 Medical College of Wisconsin; Instituto Conmemorativo Gorgas, SNI-Senacyt; University of New
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Mexico; Instituto Conmemorativo Gorgas; University of Alabama at Birmingham
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5

Background: Leishmania is sandfly-borne neglected tropical parasite which affects over 12 million people
worldwide with 1.6 million new cases annually. In Panama there are over 3000 cases of Cutaneous
Leishmaniasis (CL) every year, the majority caused by Leishmania panamensis. The pathogenesis in CL
is typically localized to the skin and thought to be an imbalance in cell-mediated immunity. The cutaneous
microbiome likely plays a role in priming the immune system, however the specific organisms associated
with this activation is unknown as is the cutaneous microbiome associated with leishmaniasis.
Methods: This prospective study enrolled adult patients with Cutaneous Leishmaniasis and then collected
cutaneous samples from the leishmania lesions on day 0, 30 and 90 as well as a control microbiome sample
from >2cm from the nearest leishmania border. 16S rRNA gene sequence data was generated by barcoding
and multiplexing samples onto an Illumina MiSeq platform. Alpha (within sample) and Beta (between
samples, both lesion-perilesional and between patients) diversity were calculated. Results: Preliminary
descriptive analysis of lesional microbiome revealed a predominance of several phyla:
Proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. On the genus level Staphylococcus, Corynebacterium,
Acinetobacter were the most prominent organisms. The bioinformatics including Alpha and Beta diversity
is currently being calculated on a longitudinal basis. Conclusions: Patients unexpectedly had a
predominance of gram-negative organisms, an uncommon cutaneous organism. This is possibly due to the
moist proteinaceous environment produced by the leishmania lesion. However, environmental conditions
such as humidity and/or bathing conditions may also play a role in determining the cutaneous microbiome.
The presence of Proteobacteria in the lesions and the surrounding skin may be contributing to the
imbalance in cell-mediated immunity. Future metabolomic studies need to be performed to identify potential
therapeutic options to improve Leishmania healing.

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