Acute phase proteins response in cats naturally infected with <i>Hepatozoon felis</i> and <i>Babesia vogeli</i>

Vilhena, Hugo; Tvarijonaviciute, Asta; Cerón, José J.; Vieira, Lisete; Pastor, Josep; Silvestre‐Ferreira, Ana C.

doi:10.1111/vcp.12451

Cited by 18 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…In several of the described cases of feline Hepatozoon infections, coinfections with other pathogens were diagnosed, including the immunosuppressive viruses FIV and FeLV [11,12,24], Feline Panleukopenia Virus [32], Leishmania [9,11,12,23], Babesia spp. [11,37], Cytauxzoon [25] and hemotropic mycoplasmosis [1,3,9,25]. In the present case, no Cytauxzoon or other organisms like hemotropic mycoplasmas or Anaplasma spp.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 42%

First autochthonous case of clinical Hepatozoon felis infection in a domestic cat in Central Europe

Basso

Görner²,

Globokar

et al. 2019

Parasitology International

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A B S T R A C TThree different Hepatozoon (Apicomplexa, Hepatozoidae) species have been described infecting domestic cats in Europe (i.e. H. felis, H. canis and H. silvestris), however, reports on clinical hepatozoonosis are uncommon and treatment protocols are not clearly defined.A six-year-old male European short-hair cat from Austria presented poor general condition, lethargy, anorexia, icterus, a painful abdomen, fever, ruffled hair and a tick infestation, and it had never left Austria. Laboratory tests revealed leukopenia, thrombocytopenia and increased serum levels of symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) and bilirubin. In May Grünwald-Giemsa-stained blood smears, structures resembling Hepatozoon gamonts were observed inside neutrophil granulocytes. A PCR targeting a fragment of the 18S rRNA gene of Hepatozoon spp. and DNA sequencing allowed the diagnosis of H. felis-DNA in blood samples. The cat was treated with imidocarb dipropionate (6 mg/kg body weight, repeated after 14 days) and doxycycline monohydrate (5 mg/kg body weight twice a day, p.o., for four weeks) and recovered completely. A broad haematological and biochemical laboratory control after six months showed all evaluated parameters under normal ranges. Coinfection with other feline pathogens (i.e. feline leukaemia virus, feline immunodeficiency virus, feline Coronavirus, Leishmania and Dirofilaria immitis) could not be detected.This study reveals the presence of H. felis in Austria and provides more evidence on the geographical distribution and pathogenicity of this parasite for domestic cats. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first autochthonous case of feline hepatozoonosis in Central Europe.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 42%

First autochthonous case of clinical Hepatozoon felis infection in a domestic cat in Central Europe

Basso

Görner²,

Globokar

et al. 2019

Parasitology International

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“…The dog-associated B. vogeli appears to be quite widespread in domestic cats, with reports from Brazil (54,55) and St Kitts (40) in the Americas, Portugal (28,52) in Europe, Qatar in the Middle East (38), and Thailand (49) in Asia. This is not surprising because its vector, Rhipicephalus sanguineus s.l., has a cosmopolitan distribution.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a separate study, eight cats were positive for B. vogeli (GenBank accession nos. AB896788-AB896795) (52). In a survey in southern Portugal, 43 (6.6%) of 649 cats were positive for Babesia species, possibly B. vogeli (53).…”

Section: Babesia Vogelimentioning

confidence: 99%

Babesia Species of Domestic Cats: Molecular Characterization Has Opened Pandora's Box

Penzhorn

Oosthuizen

2020

Front. Vet. Sci.

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This is the first comprehensive review of the literature pertaining to Babesia species reported from domestic cats. Description of the four species (Babesia felis, Babesia cati, Babesia herpailuri, and Babesia pantherae) named based on morphology and/or host specificity is documented. Feline babesiosis is of major veterinary concern only in South Africa. Reports of the rare occurrence of feline babesiosis cases in Europe (France, Germany, Poland, and Spain) and Asia (Israel, India, and Pakistan) are documented. Molecular characterization has revealed that cats can harbor a variety of Babesia species. The previous practice of referring to all piroplasms, especially small ones, seen on feline blood smears as B. felis is therefore no longer tenable. The near-full-length 18S rRNA gene sequences entered into GenBank in 2001 (accession no. AF244912) are designated as definitive for B. felis sensu stricto. All published literature relating to molecular characterization of feline Babesia species that could be traced was critically assessed. Four Babesia species are now known to be involved in causing feline babesiosis in South Africa: the closely related B. felis s.s. and Babesia leo (clade I), Babesia lengau (clade II), and Babesia species cat Western Cape (clade VI, Babesia s.s.). Clade VI also includes Babesia canis presentii and Babesia hongkongensis reported from cats in Asia. Six other Babesia species have been reported from domestic cats: the dog-associated B. canis s.s., Babesia gibsoni, and B. vogeli, as well as Babesia lohae, Babesia microti, and Babesia vulpes. Phylogenetic relationships of all named species were assessed and are presented as trees. The relatively high prevalence of B. vogeli in clinically healthy cats (16% in Brazil, 13% on St Kitts, and 8.1% in Portugal) suggests that immunocompetent cats can harbor the infection with no discernible untoward effects. Reports of occurrence of B. felis and other Babesia species in domestic cats should be accepted only if they are supported by credible molecular provenance.

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“…APPs are species-speci c; in cats, Serum Amyloid A (SAA) is a major acute protein, Haptoglobin (Hp) is a positive moderate one, and albumin and paraoxonase-1 (PON1) [22][23][24][25][26] are negatives ones, with the latter also considered a biomarker of oxidative stress [27]. Several investigations have been carried out concerning the usefulness of APPs in infectious diseases in cats, providing valuable information [28][29][30].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acute Phase Proteins and Total Antioxidant Capacity in Free-Roaming Cats Infected by Pathogenic Leptospires

Picco

Cuenca

Serrano

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Leptospirosis is a neglected but widespread zoonotic disease throughout the world. The vast majority of mammals are hosts of Leptospira spp., including domestic cats. Though clinical signs of active leptospirosis are generally mild in cats, chronic infections might result in renal injury. However, there is no consensus either on the clinical presentation nor on the disease diagnosis in cats. The study of acute-phase proteins (APPs) and biomarkers of oxidative status would contribute to knowledge about the development ofthe disease in cats. In this report, we evaluated four APPs: Serum amyloid A-SAA, Haptoglobin–Hp, albumin and Paraoxonase 1-PON1 and the antioxidant response through Total Antioxidant Capacity-TAC, in 13 free-roaming cats naturally infected by pathogenic leptospires and 19 leptospires-free cats, through a Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Results: DNA positive cats showed higher serum SAA and Hp concentrations than seropositive cats and their leptospires-free counterparts. DNA positive individuals, however, had lower serum PON1 activity and albumin concentrations than seropositive and leptospires-free cats. On the other hand, the increase in TAC serum concentrations was positively associated with anti-leptospiral antibodies titre. The PCA retained two principal components (PC1 and PC2), explaining 60.1% of the observed variability of the inflammatory proteins and the antioxidant TAC. PC1 was mainly associated with an inflammatory process, whereas PC2 correlated with the antioxidant status. The most contributing variables in PC1 where albumin (27.46%), SAA (24.71%), Hp (21.56%) and PON1 (20.69%). Variables with significant contribution to the PC2 were the antibody titre against Leptospira spp. (48.41%) and TAC (35.04%). Overall the PCA revealed differences in inflammatory and antioxidant biomarkers in cats naturally infected with leptospires compared to leptospires-free cats.Conclusions: Increases in Serum SAA, Hp, and decreases in serum albumin concentrations and PON1 activity indicate an acute phase response in infected, DNA positive cats. Moreover, we found an increase in TAC serum concentrations indicating an antioxidant response in this infection, which is proportional to the antibody titre and not to the presence of bacterial DNA.

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Acute phase proteins response in cats naturally infected with Hepatozoon felis and Babesia vogeli

Abstract: This study demonstrated differences in APP concentrations in cats infected with H felis and B vogeli. Therefore, Hp and PON1 concentrations could be helpful in discriminating healthy cats from cats with asymptomatic or symptomatic infection by these agents.

Cited by 18 publications

References 17 publications

First autochthonous case of clinical Hepatozoon felis infection in a domestic cat in Central Europe

First autochthonous case of clinical Hepatozoon felis infection in a domestic cat in Central Europe

Babesia Species of Domestic Cats: Molecular Characterization Has Opened Pandora's Box

Acute Phase Proteins and Total Antioxidant Capacity in Free-Roaming Cats Infected by Pathogenic Leptospires

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