Antibodies to Leishmania spp. in domestic felines

Abstract

Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne zoonotic disease caused by protozoa in the genus Leishmania, typical of rural and peri-urban environments. The causative agent of American visceral leishmaniasis is Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi and the main insect vector in Brazil is Lutzomyia longipalpis. Dogs (Canis familiaris) are important in the transmission of the disease, as a reservoir closely related to humans and an infection source for phlebotomine vectors. Since 1990, an increasing number of feline leishmaniasis cases have been reported, suggesting that domestic cats (Felis catus) might be involved in the epidemiology of the disease. The present study analyzed the prevalence of anti-Leishmania spp. antibodies in naturally infected domestic cats from various neighborhoods in the municipality of Belém, Pará, Brazil, using the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and the direct agglutination test (DAT). Among the 443 samples tested, 18 (4.06%) presented positive reactions in the IFA. The observed titers were 40 IU in 4.97% of the samples and 80 IU in 0.90%. In the DAT test, positive results were found in 25 (5.64%) of the samples. The observed titers were also 40 IU (4.97%) and 80 IU (0.68%). The agreement rate between the two tests was considered low (Kappa coefficient = 0.10).Keywords: Indirect immunofluorescence assay, direct agglutination test, leishmaniasis, cats. ResumoAs leishmanioses são zoonoses vetoriais causadas por protozoários do gênero Leishmania, características de ambientes rurais e periurbanos. A leishmaniose visceral americana (LVA) é causada pela Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi, cujo principal vetor no Brasil é Lutzomyia longipalpis. O cão (Canis familiaris) possui papel ativo na transmissão da doença, pois é um reservatório muito próximo do humano e uma fonte de infecção para o flebotomíneo. O aumento do número de casos de leishmaniose felina, descritos na literatura a partir de 1990, sugere Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne zoonotic disease caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania, Kinetoplastida order, Trypanosomatidae family, and transmitted by phlebotomine species, causing tegumental and visceral injuries (ROSA, 2009). In the parasitic life cycle, promastigotes are found in the vector and amastigotes are found in the infected host tissues (BANETH, 2006). Leishmaniasis is typical of rural and peri-urban environments. Domestic and wild mammals can be infected; humans are considered accidental hosts of the protozoa (CURI et al., 2006).The dog (Canis familiaris) has an active role in the transmission of the disease as an asymptomatic reservoir that is closely related to humans and an infection source to phlebotomine vectors (COURTENAY et al., 2002).American visceral leishmaniasis is caused by Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi, and is a serious public health problem in Brazil owing to the wide geographical distribution v. 24, n. 4, out.-dez. 2015 465 Leishmania spp. in cats of the disease, high incidence, and the ability to lead to a severe clinical form that ...

Prevention of feline leishmaniosis with an imidacloprid 10%/flumethrin 4.5% polymer matrix collar

“…Although the comparison of results among different studies is not always possible, our findings are in overall agreement with those reported in previous surveys that combined serological and molecular tests to investigate feline L. infantum infection prevalence [20, 31, 32]. On the other hand, conjunctival swabs have recently been considered as a sensitive non-invasive technique for the molecular diagnosis of L. infantum infection in both dogs and cats [33–35], displaying positive predictive values in animals with active infection or diseased, and a substantial agreement between serological and molecular tests [34]. In the present study, the purpose of diagnosis was to either discover exposure to infective sand fly bites or active infections for which seroconversion had already occurred.…”

Serological and molecular investigation of Leishmania spp. infection in cats from an area endemic for canine and human leishmaniasis in Northeast Brazil

“…The FeL seropositivity here was higher than that observed in Recife and Teresina, where 3.9% and 4% of the cats were found be seropositive for FeL using ELISA (SILVA et al, 2014;MENDONÇA et al, 2017). Sero-epidemiological investigations in other regions of the country found frequencies varying from 0.5% to 54%, using IFAT and the same cut-off value adopted here (1:40) (VIDES et al, 2011;CARDIA et al, 2013;BRAGA et al, 2014;SOUSA et al, 2014;OLIVEIRA et al, 2015;GODOI et al, 2016;COURA et al, 2018;MATOS et al, 2018). In canine leishmaniasis, high serological titers (four times the established cut-off value) with clinical signs compatible with leishmaniasis are diagnostic for the disease (SOLANO-GALLEGO et al, 2011).…”

“…In Brazil, studies on FeL using serological, parasitological, and molecular methods revealed that infection frequencies varied from 0% to 54% (BRESCIANI et al, 2010;VIDES et al, 2011;CARDIA et al, 2013;BRAGA et al, 2014;SILVA et al, 2014;SOUSA et al, 2014;OLIVEIRA et al, 2015;GODOI et al, 2016;MENDONÇA et al, 2017;COURA et al, 2018;MATOS et al, 2018). Only a small fraction of these studies was performed in the Northeast region that was home to 82.5% of all reported cases of human leishmaniasis in Brazil between 1980 and 2005, making this region an area of epidemiological relevance for this disease in Brazil (MAIA-ELKHOURY et al, 2008;SILVA et al, 2014;MENDONÇA et al, 2017).…”

Serological, molecular, and microscopic detection of Leishmania in cats (Felis catus) in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais State, Brazil

“…Multiple studies have examined the seroprevalence of Leishmania (CARDIA et al, 2013;SILVA et al, 2014;BRAGA et al, 2014;NOÉ et al, 2015;OLIVEIRA et al, 2015;BALDINI-PERUCA et al, 2017) and the occurrence of natural cases of leishmaniasis (PASSOS et al, 1996;SCHUBACH et al, 2004;SOUZA et al, 2005) in cats in Brazil. However, experimental studies on leishmaniasis in cats are scarce (KIRKPATRICK et al, 1984;SIMÕES-MATTOS et al, 2005), and reports regarding the evaluation of the cellular immune response against the parasite are lacking (PENNISI et al, 2015).…”