Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile

Salazar-Ardiles, Camila; Pérez-Arancibia, Alexander; Asserella-Rebollo, Leyla; Gómez-Silva, Benito

doi:10.3390/microorganisms10122315

Open AccessCommunication

Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile

by

Camila Salazar-Ardiles

^1,2,

Alexander Pérez-Arancibia

²,

Leyla Asserella-Rebollo

³ and

Benito Gómez-Silva

^2,*

¹

Departamento Tecnología Médica, Health Sciences Faculty, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta 1270300, Chile

²

Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department, Health Sciences Faculty, Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (CeBiB), Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta 1270300, Chile

³

Escuela de Tecnología Médica, Facultad de Salud, Universidad Santo Tomás, Santo Tomas 083067, Chile

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Microorganisms 2022, 10(12), 2315; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10122315

Submission received: 22 September 2022 / Revised: 14 November 2022 / Accepted: 21 November 2022 / Published: 23 November 2022

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Acanthamoeba)

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Abstract

Substantial knowledge has accumulated on the microbiome of the hyperarid Atacama Desert during the last two decades; however, information on Atacama free-living amoebae (FLA) is limited and increasing efforts are required. FLA are polyphyletic heterotrophic naked or testate protists that feed on organic matter, fungi, protozoa, and bacteria and may disseminate infections. Amoebae in Chile are represented by 416 taxa and 64 genera, and 29 taxa have been identified in arid shrub lands at the southern limit of the Atacama Desert, and Acanthamoeba are present in all the country’s regions. To expand our knowledge and to contribute to the biogeographic distribution of Atacama FLA, we report the dominant presence of members of the genus Acanthamoeba in water and sediment sampled at the Loa and Salado rivers in the pre-Andean zone of the Antofagasta Region, northern Chile, at sites 2500 m above sea level. We expect these observations and preliminary evidence of FLA presence in other wetlands (Chiuchiu, Tebenquiche) in this region to be incentive for further exploration of Atacama amoebae.

Keywords: free-living amoebae; Acanthamoeba; Atacama Desert; Loa River; Salado River; Chiuchiu Pond; Tebenquiche; Salar de Atacama

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MDPI and ACS Style

Salazar-Ardiles, C.; Pérez-Arancibia, A.; Asserella-Rebollo, L.; Gómez-Silva, B. Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile. Microorganisms 2022, 10, 2315. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10122315

AMA Style

Salazar-Ardiles C, Pérez-Arancibia A, Asserella-Rebollo L, Gómez-Silva B. Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile. Microorganisms. 2022; 10(12):2315. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10122315

Chicago/Turabian Style

Salazar-Ardiles, Camila, Alexander Pérez-Arancibia, Leyla Asserella-Rebollo, and Benito Gómez-Silva. 2022. "Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile" Microorganisms 10, no. 12: 2315. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10122315

APA Style

Salazar-Ardiles, C., Pérez-Arancibia, A., Asserella-Rebollo, L., & Gómez-Silva, B. (2022). Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile. Microorganisms, 10(12), 2315. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10122315

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

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Presence of Free-living Acanthamoeba in Loa and Salado Rivers, Atacama Desert, Northern Chile

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