Venturing deep into the lowland forests of the Congo Basin, researchers from the Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences (IVB), and the Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, recently returned to the Dzanga Sangha Protected Areas (DSPA) in the Central African Republic. The expedition team, comprising Dr Michael Kotyk, Dr Bethan Mason (both IVB) and Marek Valt (Charles University), focused on investigating entodiniomorphid ciliates in western lowland gorillas, a project funded by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic. Based within Dzanga-Ndoki National Park, the team worked closely with the Primate Habituation Program of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to collect fresh faecal samples from wild western lowland gorillas. As the ciliate cells degrade quickly after defecation, the team used airtight thermostabilised containers to store the samples immediately after defecation. They were then quickly transported to the newly equipped field laboratory in Bayanga, a village lying on the outskirts of the national park. By successfully managing complex field logistics, the team became the first to study these organisms alive, as previous knowledge was based only on dead ciliates from chemically fixed samples. Having optimised their methods for ciliate longevity through trials using faeces from captive gorillas in collaboration with Prague Zoo, the team was pleased to find that these methods were also successful under field conditions.
With the Central African Government and WWF now having over 40 years of partnership in creating, protecting, and developing DSPA, the country’s first ever Dzanga Sangha Day was celebrated to commemorate these efforts. Beginning with a formal ceremony in the capital Bangui, the three-day event was attended by the country’s president, Prof. Faustin-Archange Touadéra, alongside senior government officials, international partners, scientists, and civil society. Under the official theme: “Reconciling Nature, Health, and Development”, the event showcased DSPA for both its rich cultural heritage and incredible natural landscape. The IVB researchers from the Primate Symbiont Ecology Research Group were invited to participate as a recognition of their long-term research at the DSPA, which began with their first fieldwork there two decades ago. Dr Mason presented the team’s long-standing research efforts, focused on the overarching aim of investigating the ecological and evolutionary predictors of the great ape gastrointestinal landscape. As a part of the One Health stand organised by Helmholtz Institute for One Health, Dr Mason’s poster presented topics such as ‘strongylid nematodes as disease agents in gorillas’, ‘zoonotic transmission of Strongyloides’, and ‘microbiome and gorilla cardiometabolic disease’. Not only was Dzanga Sangha Day an exciting opportunity to showcase the work of IVB researchers in DSPA, but it was also overall a joyful celebration of the tireless dedication shown by so many to protect this special landscape.
Now returning to the Czech Republic, a complex downstream workflow awaits in the laboratory. The team will use techniques such as single-cell metagenomics and transcriptomics, alongside FISH (fluorescence in situ hybridisation) and transmission electron microscopy. These methods will allow the researchers to study the phylogenetic position and metabolic capabilities of the ciliates, as well as the identity and localisation of their prokaryotic endosymbionts. Meanwhile, the team will also begin planning for the next field expedition, which will take place next year and allow researchers to focus on the entodiniomorphid ciliates of gorillas during the fruiting season. As part of this trip, the team will also curate and deliver a one-week workshop at the University of Bangui, split into two parallel sections: entomology and non-invasive sampling as a conservation tool. Overall, it is hoped this work will shed valuable insight into the role of entodiniomorphid ciliates in gorilla digestion and their importance for the health of the host. Alongside this, the project continues to build upon the collaboration between IVB and the University of Bangui, with in-country collaboration and skills sharing representing a key commitment of the group’s work in DSPA.
