Aelurostrongylus abstrusus is the most important respiratory parasite infecting domestic cats worldwide. Nevertheless, most records and epizootiological data come from Europe, whilst poor and fragmentary information are available for other regions, including the Americas. The present article describes the first description of cat aelurostrongylosis from Amazonia, Brazil. Eighty-one cats, 13 from a shelter and 68 admitted at the Teaching and Research Unit in Veterinary Medicine (UV) at the Federal University of Acre (UFAC), Brazil, were included in the study. For all cats, three faecal samples from consecutive defecations were examined using the Baermann’s technique. Nematode first stage larvae (L1), retrieved in 2/81 (2.5%) samples, were microscopically identified as A. abstrusus and then subjected to a molecular assay able to identify the three most important species of metastrongyloids infecting felids. This test confirmed the A. abstrusus identity in one sample, while the second scored negative. The cat with confirmed aelurostrongylosis showed radiographic changes, i.e., an interstitial pattern, compatible with the infection. The other cat, which scored positive at the Baermann’s examination, was apparently healthy at the physical examination and showed no thoracic alterations. The occurrence of A. abstrusus in domestic cats from Brazilian Amazon is herein demonstrated for the first time. Clinical, epizootiological and molecular implications are discussed.

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Canine cutaneous leishmaniasis (CCL) is a zoonosis of public health interest, and in the Americas, Leishmania ( Viannia ) braziliensis has been identified as the main etiological agent. The present study sought to investigate Leishmania spp. infection in domestic dogs from a rural area of the Xapuri municipality, Acre state, Brazilian Amazonia. For this purpose, visits were carried out to domiciles where the human cases of American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) occurred, followed by the clinical evaluation of the animals in search of clinical signs suggestive of CCL. Blood samples were collected from 40 dogs, 13 of which had lesions suggestive of CCL, and biopsies of these lesions were performed. The methods used were Neal, Novy, and Nicolle’s (NNN) medium cultures and direct parasitological examination. Further, to detect and characterize Leishmania DNA some molecular techniques were performed such as conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing targeting SSU rDNA and ITS1, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and high resolution melting (HRM) analysis targeting hsp70. The investigation revealed that the results obtained from the parasitological methods were negative. In PCR by ITS1 and network topology sequences, six strains from dogs, isolated from the Peruvian Andes, appeared identical to Leishmania ( Viannia ) braziliensis type 2 (99–100%). By other molecular methods these samples turned out to be positive to Leishmania ( Viannia ) sp.. The diagnosis of Leishmania in domestic dogs from Acre state showed a high proportion of infected animals, and the occurrence of L . braziliensis type 2 in Brazil for the first time. This new report suggests that L . braziliensis type 2 is both trans- and cis-Andean. However, more studies are needed regarding the clinical and diagnostic aspects of this species of Leishmania .

Avaliou-se o efeito da adição das vitaminas C e E na ração sobre o desempenho zootécnico, rendimento de carcaça, de cortes nobres, de parâmetros hematológicos e de órgão linfoide (baço) de frangos de corte criados em ambiente de estresse calórico, CMR e temperaturas elevadas. Foram utilizados 300 frangos de corte em lote misto, de linhagem Cobb, no período de 1 a 64 dias de vida. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado com 5 tratamento e 6 repetições. Os tratamentos foram distribuídos da seguinte forma: T1 CN com vazio sanitário, T2 CMR sem vazio sanitário, T3 CMR sem vazio sanitário + 200mg/kg de vitamina C e E, T4 CMR sem vazio sanitário + 350mg/kg de vitamina C e E, T5 CMR sem vazio sanitário + 500mg/kg de vitamina C e E na proporção 150g/Kg de ácido ascórbico e 75g/Kg de D-Alfa-Tocoferol. A CMR contribuiu para o aparecimento de algum processo infeccioso nas aves, constatado por alteração no parâmetro hematológico, evidenciado pela visualização de heterófilos do tipo bastonete/imaturo no T2, porém sem caracterização clínica. A adição da vitamina C e E melhorou o ganho de peso, conversão alimentar e a eficiência alimentar, por outro lado não influenciou os parâmetros hematológicos nem o peso relativo de baço. Concluiu-se que a suplementação de vitamina C e E amenizou o desafio imposto aos frangos, contribuindo dessa maneira para um melhor desempenho zootécnico.Palavras-chave: Avicultura, desempenho, suplementação vitamínica.

There are several methods of laboratory diagnosis of filarids, the most used are the thick smear and the Knott method. Both are quick to perform, have a low cost and allow observing the presence, quantifying and analyzing the morphological characteristics of microfilariae. Knowing the morphological viability of fixed microfilariae is of practical importance, as it allows the transport of samples to a laboratory, facilitates epidemiological studies , and allows the storage of samples for didactic. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the morphological viability of microfilariae fixed in the refrigerated modified knott test using 2% formalin. To perform the modified Knott technique, 10 samples of microfilaremic dogs aged over 6 months were used. To evaluate the morphological viability time of the microfilariae in the modified Knott concentrate, the evaluations were repeated after intervals of 0, 1, 7, 30, 60, 120, 180, 240, and 304 days. In the present study, we did not verify any difference in the morphology of the microfilariae in any of the analyzed intervals from day 0 to 304 days, and it is possible to conclude that the use of 2% formalin in the modified Knott technique allows the microfilariae to be identified in a period of 304 days. days after processing the sample without changes in its morphology.