Fig. 5: VESPA compared to microscopy in non-human primate clinical samples.

VESPA metabarcoding data. VESPA data are shown as percent relative abundance of each organism category with (a) all quality-filtered reads included, (b) with helminth reads only, or (c) with protozoal reads only (archaea, bacteria, host, plants, invertebrates, and fungi removed in (b, c)). a Numbers above bars are the total percentage of prokaryotic (bacterial + archaeal) reads. c Asterisk indicates a microsporidian parasite. d Microscopy versus VESPA. Microscopy findings (M) are shown as a qualitative score (1 least—3 most) for protozoa, larvae/gram feces for Strongyloides, and eggs/gram feces for all other helminths. VESPA findings (MB) are shown as % abundance of quality-filtered reads. Yellow cells represent parasite detection by microscopy, blue cells by VESPA, green cells by both methods, and white cells by neither method. Richness (final 2 rows, shaded cells) is defined as the total number of species detected by the specified method. Prevalence (final 2 columns, shaded cells) is defined as the proportion of the population positive for an organism by the specified method. Note that Entamoeba histolytica and Entamoeba dispar are a morphologic cryptic species complex that cannot be resolved by microscopy (asterisk) and Piroplasmida sp. are not detectable in fecal samples by microscopy (double asterisk). e Proportional Venn diagrams of findings by microscopy versus VESPA. Individuals identified as positive for the listed organisms by microscopy (yellow), VESPA (blue), or both (green) are shown as numbers in each circle. Overall findings summed over all organisms are shown above the bracket (not to scale). Note that Entamoeba histolytica and Entamoeba dispar are a cryptic species complex that cannot be resolved by microscopy (asterisk) and Piroplasmida sp. are not detectable in fecal samples by microscopy (double asterisk). f Richness and prevalence calculations (n = 40 independent samples) for microscopy (M) and VESPA (MB) findings. Data are shown as mean ± SEM. Protozoa richness: P < 0.0001, Microsporidian richness: P = 0.25, Helminths richness: P = 0.0009, Protozoa prevalence: P = 0.0586, Helminths prevalence: P = 0.0078. P values are derived from Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed rank tests, 2-tailed. ns, not significant. NA, not applicable (single data point only). Source data are provided as a Source Data file.