LSU School of Veterinary Medicine professor Kevin Macaluso received a $100,000 grant from Research to STOP Neglected Tropical Disease Transmission, or R2STOP, for his research called “Role of arthropods in transmission of leprosy.”
Macaluso’s research focuses on the transmission of leprosy from wild animals — like armadillos — to humans who have had little to rare contact with these animals, as well as to determine if Amblyomma ticks are a vector in the transmission of leprosy from animals to humans. Macaluso said they are setting up multiple experiments to see if the ticks can transmit leprosy.
“There has been studies looking at arthropods and their role in leprosy transmission, but to date there’s no unequivocal study that defines the means by which someone contracts leprosy from another individual,” Macaluso said.
While there are many cases of humans contracting leprosy after coming into contact with wild armadillos, there are also people with strains of the bacteria that have had little to no contact with these animals. However, these patients said they participate in extensive outdoor activity, leading researchers to wonder if the transmission was through other organisms or if it was environmentally independent.
Macaluso applied for the grant funded by R2STOP in the summer of 2016 along with 42 other applicants. Only six applicants’ proposals received the grant, including Macaluso. R2STOP is a foundation that aims to promote and fund research to help researchers understand the relationship between hosts, environment and pathogens that cause neglected tropical diseases. R2STOP will fund Macaluso’s research for two years, for $100,000 per year.
While Macaluso is the primary researcher, he is collaborating with LSU School of Veterinary Medicine professor Richard Truman, who is also the chief for the Laboratory Research Branch with the National Hansen’s Disease Program (NHDP). He is also collaborating with NHDP research fellows Marla Pena and Rahul Sharma. The NHDP is also located at the University’s School of Veterinary Medicine, so collaborations often occur, Truman said.
“I think it’s a great chance to collaborate with researchers on a different area of study and not my regular area,” Macaluso said. “That’s the exciting part.”