Necrophagous flies are associated with a variety of materials harboring potential pathogens, including decomposing animals, fecal material, and food waste. Due to this association, necrophagous flies and other filth flies have been implicated in mechanically vectoring a variety of pathogens, including foodborne illnesses (i.e., Escherichia coli) and highly virulent pathogens (i.e., Bacillus anthracis). Therefore, filth flies are often considered as pest insects, overlooking the potential benefits these flies can provide through ecosystem services and as environmental monitors of pathogens. For example, Giardia duodenales and Cryptosporidium parvum are two zoonotic protozoan parasites that cause gastrointestinal distress and serious disease in young individuals and the immunocompromised. However, majority of infected individuals are asymptomatic, allowing the pathogen to spread discreetly through domestic and wild animal populations. Filth flies have been documented to carry Giardia sp. and Cryptosporidium sp. cysts/oocysts on their cuticle and within their gut, creating a positive association between flies and contaminated materials. This association presents an opportunity to utilize filth flies as environmental monitors of these pathogens. This presentation will discuss how flies can be utilized in place of traditional testing mediums (i.e., animal scat) to detect and locate pathogens such as Giardia sp. and Cryptosporidium sp. within ecosystems. Included in this presentation are a series of experiments validating the use of insects in lateral-flow immunosorbent assays in leu of traditional testing mediums in the laboratory and across a recreationally used protected wetland near Boston Massachusetts. Projections of this methodology with other pathogens will also be discussed.
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