Hematological alterations during experimental canine infection by Trypanosoma cruzi

Abstract

To confirm that Beagle dogs are a good experimental model for Chagas disease, we evaluated hematological alterations during the acute and chronic phases in Beagle dogs infected with the Y, Berenice-78 (Be-78) and ABC strains of Trypanosoma cruzi, correlating clinical signs with the parasitemia curve. We demonstrate that the acute phase of infection was marked by lethargy and loss of appetite. Simultaneously, we observed anemia, leukocytosis and lymphocytosis. Also,we describe hematological alterations and clinical signs that were positively correlated with the parasitemia during the experimental infection with the three strains of T. cruzi, and demonstrate that experimental infection of Beagle is a trustworthy model for Chagas disease.Keywords: Trypanosoma cruzi, Beagle dogs, parasitemia, lymphocytosis, anemia, leukocytosis. ResumoPara confirmar que cães Beagle são um bom modelo para doença de Chagas, foram avaliadas as alterações hematológicas durante as fases aguda e crônica em cães Beagle infectados com as cepas Y, Berenice-78 (Be-78) e ABC de Trypanosoma cruzi, correlacionando os sinais clínicos com a curva de parasitemia. Foi demonstrado que a fase aguda da infecção foi marcada por letargia e perda de apetite. Simultaneamente, observou-se anemia, leucocitose e linfocitose. Ainda, foram descritas alterações hematológicas e sinais clínicos positivamente correlacionados com a parasitemia durante a infecção experimental com as três cepas de T. cruzi estudadas, demonstrando que a infecção em cães Beagle constitui um modelo fidedigno para a doença de Chagas.

Comparative mild, moderate and severe effects of Trypanosomiasis and Ancylostomiasis on the Haemogram of Local dog breeds

“…The WBC counts of the infected dogs increased relative to the normal value in some cases; this agrees with the finding of other reports, which observed similar findings in goats suffering from trypanosomiasis [36], in dogs infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei [37], and in rats infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei [38]. The other researchers also reported leucocytosis in canine trypanosomiasis [35,39], but in the report by Adeyemi et al [38], leucocytosis was preceded by either a slight depression or no change in mean leucocyte counts. This result did not agree with the reports of leucopoenia [31,40,41] in natural cases of canine trypanosomiasis.…”

“…There is also corresponding decrease in the HbC values in almost all cases of canine trypanosomiasis, except for very few dogs with high HbC value which was not statistically significant (P < 0.05); the decrease in HbC values agrees with the reports by Guedes et al [35]. The WBC counts of the infected dogs increased relative to the normal value in some cases; this agrees with the finding of other reports, which observed similar findings in goats suffering from trypanosomiasis [36], in dogs infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei [37], and in rats infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei [38].…”

Trypanosomiasis

“…32,33 Thrombocytopenia, leukopenia, and/or lymphopenia have also been documented. 32,33 Thrombocytopenia, leukopenia, and/or lymphopenia have also been documented.…”

Echocardiographic Findings in Canine Model of Chagas Disease Immunized with DNA Trypanosoma cruzi Genes

“…This technique has been shown to be repeatable and reproducible in dogs [19]. In addition, the canine model has gained wide acceptance as another experimental model to study a wide variety of conditions associated with ChD; however, the development of vaccines as a prophylactic method has not been widely addressed [20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30].…”