Hepatozoon canis and Leishmania spp. coinfection in dogs diagnosed with visceral leishmaniasis

Morgado, Fernanda Nazaré; Cavalcanti, Amanda dos Santos; Miranda, Luisa Helena de; O’Dwyer, Lúcia Helena; Silva, Maria Regina Lucas da; Menezes, Rodrigo Caldas; Silva, Aurea Virginia Andrade da; Boité, Mariana Côrtes; Cupolillo, Elisa; Porrozzi, Renato

doi:10.1590/s1984-29612016065

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 30 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In contrast to many other CVBD-causing pathogens, hemotropic mycoplasmas are known to be transmitted not only by blood-sucking arthropods, but also directly via infected blood (Willi et al 2010 ). Concomitant infections and immunosuppression presumably induce acute onset of disease (Baneth et al 2001 ; do Nascimento et al 2012 ) or exacerbation of clinical symptoms (Morgado et al 2016 ). The zoonotic potential of other hemotropic mycoplasmas has been demonstrated in several human cases (Steer et al 2011 ; Dos Santos et al 2008 ; Yuan et al 2009 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vector-borne pathogens affecting shelter dogs in eastern Crete, Greece

Hofmann

Hodžić

Pouliou³

et al. 2019

Parasitol Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Canine pathogens transmitted by blood-sucking arthropods are of significant importance for veterinary and, in some cases, human health. However, they are still underestimated and rarely investigated in many parts of the Mediterranean region, mostly due to financial reasons. Therefore, in the present paper, we investigated the occurrence of blood-associated pathogens affecting dogs in Crete, Greece. For this purpose, blood samples from 103 shelter dogs were screened for the pathogens by PCR and serological tests. Overall, samples from 43 dogs scored positive for at least one pathogen (41.8%). In particular, antibodies to Leishmania infantum were detected in 26 dogs (25.2%), and 15 and 11 animals were positive for Hepatozoon canis (14.6%) and Mycoplasma haemocanis (10.7%) by PCR, respectively. Co-infections were recorded in nine animals. Clinical signs indicative of infection (alterations of skin or coat or reduced body condition) were detected in 10 animals, four of which were infected with one pathogen, three with two pathogens. Based on the results obtained, dogs from Crete appear to be frequently exposed to several blood-borne pathogens, including agents of zoonotic concern. Given that some of the pathogens were reported for the first time in this area, results presented in our study should improve the awareness of the local veterinarians and of dog rescue organisations in order to reduce disease burden on stray and owned dogs and to control the spread of canine vector-borne diseases from Greece to non-endemic areas by travelling or exported infected dogs.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vector-borne pathogens affecting shelter dogs in eastern Crete, Greece

Hofmann

Hodžić

Pouliou³

et al. 2019

Parasitol Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Other vector-borne co-infections (e.g. Dirofilaria immitis, Ehrlichia canis, Hepatozoon canis) can influence parasite burden and progression of CanL (De Tommasi et al, 2013;Morgado et al, 2016;Tabar et al, 2013). In cats the association between retroviral, coronavirus, Toxoplasma or some vector-borne co-infections in cats antibody and/or PCR positive to L. infantum has been explored (Attipa et al, 2017;Ayllón et al, 2012;Pennisi et al, 2012Pennisi et al, , 2000Pennisi et al, , 1998Persichetti et al, 2016;Sherry et al, 2011;Sobrinho et al, 2012;Solano-Gallego et al, 2007;Spada et al, 2016Spada et al, , 2013Vita et al, 2005).…”

Section: Pathogenesis and Clinical Featuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feline leishmaniosis: Is the cat a small dog?

Pennisi¹,

Persichetti

2018

Veterinary Parasitology

121

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Leishmania infantum is a vector-borne zoonotic disease transmitted by phlebotomine sand flies and dogs are considered the main reservoir of the parasite. Feline leishmaniosis (FeL) caused by L. infantum is an emergent feline disease more and more frequently reported in endemic areas. This review summarizes current knowledge focusing similarities and differences with canine leishmaniosis (CanL). Cats are infected by the same Leishmania species than dogs but prevalence of the infection is lower and cases of disease are less frequently reported. Scarce information is available on adaptive immune response of cats naturally exposed to L. infantum infection and mechanisms responsible for susceptibility or resistance of feline hosts. However, about half of clinical cases of FeL are reported in cats with possible impaired immunocompetence. Coinfections or comorbidities are frequently detected in sick cats and they can contribute to a misrepresentation of clinical FeL albeit lesions associated with the presence of the parasite have been detected in skin, lymph nodes, spleen, bone marrow, liver, oral mucosa, stomach, large bowel, kidney, nasal exudate, lung, eye. As for dogs, skin or mucocutaneous lesions are the most common reason for veterinary consultation and finding on physical examination in cats with leishmaniosis. Molecular investigations of Leishmania DNA and anti- Leishmania antibody detection are largely used with the same methodologies for both CanL and FeL, however few information is available about their diagnostic performance in feline hosts. Treatment of cats with clinical FeL is still empirically based and off label by using the most common drugs prescribed to dogs. Life expectancy of cats with clinical FeL is usually good unless concurrent conditions or complications occur and prognosis does not seem significantly influenced by therapy or retroviral coinfection. According to current knowledge, cats can play a role as additional reservoir host of L. infantum and, in a « One Health » perspective, preventative measures should be taken. In conclusion, albeit feline infection and the associated cat disease caused by L. infantum is increasingly reported in endemic areas and have many similarities with CanL, consolidated evidence-based knowledge is not available and we cannot exclude that important differences between dogs and cats exist about transmission, immunopathogenesis and best practice for management and prevention.

show abstract

“…Molecular characterization of Leishmania isolates has been vastly carried out by four classical markers: the rRNA internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS-1), kDNA minicircles, the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and the mitochondrial cytochrome b (Cyt-b) through techniques based on the digestion by restriction endonuclease enzymes and sequencing of amplified gene followed by phylogenetic analysis ( Buitrago et al, 2011 ; Cruz et al, 2013 ; Koltas et al, 2016 ; Morgado et al, 2016 ; Bilbao-Ramos et al, 2017 ). These studies have shown the existence of different genotypes and their relation with clinical manifestations and susceptibility to leishmanicidal drugs.…”

Section: Parasite Point Of View: Do Parasites Influence the Therapeutmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Binomial Parasite-Host Immunity in the Healing Process and in Reactivation of Human Tegumentary Leishmaniasis

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne infectious disease caused by different species of protozoa from the Leishmania genus. Classically, the disease can be classified into two main clinical forms: Visceral (VL) and Tegumentary (TL) leishmaniasis. TL is a skin/mucosal granulomatous disease that manifests mainly as cutaneous localized or disseminated ulcers, papules diffusely distributed, mucosal lesions or atypical lesions. Once the etiology of the infection is confirmed, treatment can take place, and different drugs can be administered. It has already been shown that, even when the scar is clinically evident, inflammation is still present in the native tissue, and the decrease of the inflammatory process occurs slowly during the 1st years after clinical healing. The maintenance of residual parasites in the scar tissue is also well documented. Therefore, it is no longer a surprise that, under some circumstances, therapeutic failure and/or lesion reactivation occurs. All over the years, an impressive amount of data on relapses, treatment resistance and lesion reactivation after healing has been collected, and several factors have been pointed out as having a role in the process. Different factors such as Leishmania species, parasite variability, Leishmania RNA virus 1, parasite load, parasite persistence, age, nutritional status, gender, co-morbidities, co-infection, pregnancy, immunosuppression, lesion duration, number and localization of lesions, drug metabolism, irregular treatment and individual host cellular immune response were described and discussed in the present review. Unfortunately, despite this amount of information, a conclusive understanding remains under construction. In addition, multifactorial influence cannot be discarded. In this context, knowing why leishmaniasis has been difficult to treat and control can help the development of new approaches, such as drugs and immunotherapy in order to improve healing maintenance. In this sense, we would like to highlight some of the findings that may influence the course of Leishmania infection and the therapeutic response, with an emphasis on TL.

show abstract

Hepatozoon canis and Leishmania spp. coinfection in dogs diagnosed with visceral leishmaniasis

Cited by 13 publications

References 30 publications

Vector-borne pathogens affecting shelter dogs in eastern Crete, Greece

Vector-borne pathogens affecting shelter dogs in eastern Crete, Greece

Feline leishmaniosis: Is the cat a small dog?

The Binomial Parasite-Host Immunity in the Healing Process and in Reactivation of Human Tegumentary Leishmaniasis

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About