Is There an Association Between Exposure to Cats and Occurrence of Visceral Leishmaniasis in Humans and Dogs?

Apr, Dalvi; Tdg, Carvalho; Gl, Werneck

doi:10.1089/vbz.2017.2162

Cited by 9 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Despite xenodiagnoses techniques already proving the transmission of the parasite in sand fly feeding on infected cats, no consistent data has demonstrated that L. infantum -infected cats can maintain the parasite circulation in the environment ( 48 , 98 , 99 ). Besides, there is no robust data estimating the transmission risk for humans who cohabit with infected felines ( 38 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent investigations have focused on domestic cats' potential in L. infantum transmission ( 22 , 38 ). Standardized serological tests for cats and a more detailed knowledge on their immune responses against L. infantum infection are needed ( 39 ) since coinfections may predispose cats to develop feline leishmaniasis (FeL) and other diseases ( 18 , 40 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Feline Leishmaniasis Caused by Leishmania infantum: Parasite Sequencing, Seropositivity, and Clinical Characterization in an Endemic Area From Brazil

et al. 2021

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Zoonotic leishmaniasis caused by Leishmania infantum is a disease of One Health concern since human and animal cases and environmental damage are interconnected. L. infantum has a complex epidemiological cycle with multiple hosts, including mammals—humans, domestic, and wild animals—and arthropod vectors. Knowledge on mammal infections in endemic areas is crucial for developing control strategies. This work aimed to detect and characterize L. infantum infection in domestic cats from areas where human and canine leishmaniasis cases occur. No cases of feline leishmaniasis (FeL) had been previously reported in those areas. Five municipalities from Bahia state were chosen, comprising 2,480.8 km2 with 1,103,866 inhabitants. Ninety domiciliated and/or sheltered cats underwent clinical examination and serology by a rapid reference test recommended by the Brazilian government. Cytology, PCR, and parasite DNA sequencing were performed in bone marrow samples. Rapid tests detected antibodies in 5.6% (5/90) of the cats. Leishmania infantum infection was confirmed in 7.8% (7/90) of the cats by PCR, sequencing, and parasite isolation. Three out of the five municipalities (60%) had infected cats, and PCR positivity varied from 6.9 to 29%. One cat was categorized as harboring active L. infantum infection with amastigote forms in bone marrow smears. No clinical signs were detected at the first clinical exam, but 1 month later the cat developed severe FeL. The cat isolate was grown in culture, typed and its DNA sequence was homologous to the L. infantum reference strain (PP75). In conclusion, cats are potential hosts and may acquire L. infantum in endemic areas where canine and human cases occur. For cats, the need for surveillance, differential diagnosis and clinical care is highly recommended since a fast clinical progression of FeL developed in a subclinical animal. An accurate standardized immunodiagnostic assay for FeL is warranted.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feline Leishmaniasis Caused by Leishmania infantum: Parasite Sequencing, Seropositivity, and Clinical Characterization in an Endemic Area From Brazil

et al. 2021

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“…On the whole, this study confirms that cats living in the examined touristic areas of the Mediterranean basin are exposed to L. infantum. Infection rates in cats are generally lower than in dogs and the role of cats in the epidemiology of zoonotic leishmaniosis is still controversial and should be further investigated (16,54). Recent findings have ultimately confirmed that dogs are better reservoir and spreaders of L. infantum than cats because under the same exposure conditions they display 2 https://www.traghetti-giglio.it/en/tp-magazine/dog-friendly-holiday-giglioisland/ 3 www.mykonosanimals.org higher parasitic load, a determining factor for infectivity to sandflies (40,55).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Dogs are considered the most important domestic reservoir of L. infantum (15) while the role of cats as potential reservoir of this parasite requires further corroboration (16). Although cats are in general considered resistant to L. infantum (17), they may be infected and potentially act as a source of infection for phlebotomine sandflies (18,19).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leishmania infantum Seroprevalence in Cats From Touristic Areas of Italy and Greece

et al. 2020

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Leishmaniosis by Leishmania infantum is a major zoonotic Vector-Borne Disease (VBD) in terms of geographic distribution, pathogenicity and zoonotic potential. While dogs are the main reservoir of L. infantum, the infection in cats is poorly understood although increasingly reported from enzootic and non-enzootic areas. The Mediterranean basin is a key area for leishmaniosis and includes touristic spots that require continuous surveillance for VBDs in consideration of the growing tendency of tourists to travel with their pets. This study evaluated L. infantum seroprevalence in cats living in selected touristic localities of Italy and Greece. A total of 269 cat serum samples from three Sites i.e., 76, 40, and 153 from Adriatic Coast of Abruzzo, Italy (Site A), Giglio Island, Tuscany, Italy (Site B), and Mykonos Island, Greece (Site C), respectively, were included in the survey. Sera samples were subjected to an indirect immunofluorescence antibody assay for the detection of anti-L. infantum specific IgG. Associations between possible risk factors and seropositivity to L. infantum were statistically evaluated. Antibodies against L. infantum were detected in eight out of 269 (3.0%) cats tested i.e., 4/76 (5.3%), 1/40 (2.5%), and 3/153 (2.0%), from sites A, B, and C, respectively. A statistical association between anti-L. infantum antibodies and cohabitation with dogs was shown. This study indicates that feline populations living in the examined Italian and Greek touristic areas are exposed to L. infantum and that they may contribute to the circulation of L. infantum, enhancing the risk of infection for dogs and humans.

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“…Furthermore, much of the available information on FeL is not specific to L. infantum infection, and is mostly from reports providing little scientific evidence, such as descriptive case series, isolated case reports, extrapolations from CanL studies, or those based on the personal experience of respected experts, whilst few are based on recent research in cats [ 8 – 11 , 55 , 57 – 59 ]. Moreover, few of the published research studies describe the clinical management of leishmaniosis in cats, and instead focus on the epidemiology and prevalence of leishmaniosis in cats in regions that are endemic or non-endemic for CanL [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 13 , 57 , 60 – 82 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Review and statistical analysis of clinical management of feline leishmaniosis caused by Leishmania infantum

et al. 2022

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Background There is limited information about feline leishmaniosis (FeL) management in clinical practice. Leishmania infantum is the species of Leishmania most frequently reported in both dogs and cats in countries of the Mediterranean region (henceforth ‘Mediterranean countries’), Central and South America, and Iran. This study was conducted to provide veterinary clinicians with an updated overview of evidence-based information on leishmaniosis in cats. Methods A review was performed using PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar and Web of Science. Case reports of FeL caused by L. infantum were sought for the period 1912 to 1 June 2021. Results Sixty-three case reports are included in this review. Fifty-nine out of the 63 cats were from Europe, mostly from Mediterranean countries (88.9%). Most of them were domestic short-haired cats (90%) with a mean age of 7.9 years, and had access to the outdoors (77.3%). Sixty-six percent of the cats had comorbidities, of which feline immunodeficiency virus infection was the most frequent (37.7%). Dermatological lesions (69.8%) was the most frequent clinical sign, and hyperproteinemia (46.3%) the most frequent clinicopathological abnormality. Serology was the most performed diagnostic method (76.2%) and was positive for 93.7% of cats. Medical treatment was applied in 71.4% of cats, and allopurinol was the most used drug (74.4%). Survival time was greater for treated cats (520 days; 71.4% of cats) than non-treated cats (210 days; 25.4%). Conclusions The majority of the cats had comorbidities, of which feline immunodeficiency virus was the most frequent. Dermatological lesions were frequently reported, and systemic clinical signs and clinicopathological abnormalities were also common. Serology may be useful for the diagnosis of FeL in clinical practice, and a positive titer of ≥ 1/40 may be a useful cut-off for sick cats. The reported treatments and dosages varied, but there was a good clinical response and longer survival in most of the cats treated with allopurinol monotherapy. Graphical abstract

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Is There an Association Between Exposure to Cats and Occurrence of Visceral Leishmaniasis in Humans and Dogs?

Cited by 9 publications

References 35 publications

Feline Leishmaniasis Caused by Leishmania infantum: Parasite Sequencing, Seropositivity, and Clinical Characterization in an Endemic Area From Brazil

Feline Leishmaniasis Caused by Leishmania infantum: Parasite Sequencing, Seropositivity, and Clinical Characterization in an Endemic Area From Brazil

Leishmania infantum Seroprevalence in Cats From Touristic Areas of Italy and Greece

Review and statistical analysis of clinical management of feline leishmaniosis caused by Leishmania infantum

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