Leishmania spp. seropositivity in Austrian soldiers returning from the Kosovo

Kniha, Edwin; Walochnik, Julia; Poeppl, Wolfgang; Mooseder, Gerhard; Obwaller, Adelheid G.

doi:10.1007/s00508-019-01598-5

Cited by 9 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Most recently, in 2013 sera from 261 Austrian soldiers returning from Kosovo were tested for Leishmania antibodies using ELISA. Fifty-five (21.1%) had Leishmania antibodies (36 (13.8%) positive and 19 (7.3%) borderline) [65]. These results, combined with recent detection of L. tropica in sandflies from Kosovo [66] and of anti-Leishmania antibodies in 18.4% of 125 stray dogs [67] plus observations [66] of autochthonous VL patients in village of Ljandovica/Landovice, clearly demonstrate a considerable risk of Leishmania spp.…”

Section: Human Leishmaniasis In Kosovomentioning

confidence: 68%

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Systematic Review: Re‐emergence of human leishmaniasis in the Balkans

Vaselek

2021

Tropical Med Int Health

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OBJECTIVE To provide an updated overview of the leishmaniasis epidemiology in the Balkans, as this region presents “blank space” on the map of leishmaniasis knowledge in Europe. METHODS Following the PRISMA guideline, literature on the presence and circulation of human leishmaniasis in Balkan countries was screened in PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Scopus, Web of Science, Matica Srpska Library and the National Library of Serbia. RESULTS Sixty nine publications from 1919 until September 2020 were reviewed. Historical records indicate that leishmaniasis was previously present mainly in the southern parts of the Balkans, while newer data demonstrate its northward spread. CONCLUSIONS Human leishmaniasis is re‐emerging in the Balkans and in some areas is already widespread.

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Section: Human Leishmaniasis In Kosovomentioning

confidence: 68%

“…Most recently, in 2013 sera from 261 Austrian soldiers returning from Kosovo were tested for Leishmania antibodies using ELISA. Fifty‐five (21.1%) had Leishmania antibodies (36 (13.8%) positive and 19 (7.3%) borderline) [65]. These results, combined with recent detection of L .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Systematic Review: Re‐emergence of human leishmaniasis in the Balkans

Vaselek

2021

Tropical Med Int Health

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“…In the past decade, the number of human and animal leishmaniasis cases in Kosovo increased (unpublished data), and it is suspected that leishmaniasis become an endemic disease in this country. This observation is supported by the recent detection of anti‐ Leishmania antibodies in sera samples collected in 2013 from Austrian solders returning from their mission in Kosovo (Kniha et al ., 2020). Of 261 tested soldiers, 55 (21.1%) had anti‐ Leishmania antibodies, with 36 (13.8%) being definite positive and 19 (7.3%) borderline positive by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sandfly surveillance and investigation of Leishmania spp. DNA in sandflies in Kosovo

Vaselek

Oğuz

Ayhan

et al. 2020

Medical Vet Entomology

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In the past decade, leishmaniasis seems to be re-emerging in Balkan countries. There are serious implications that Kosovo is a visceral leishmaniasis endemic region with autochthonous transmission; nevertheless, surveillance of vectors, reservoirs or the disease is not yet established. Gaining knowledge about sandfly vector species is a prerequisite for the development of a monitoring and control plan in the future. After a long gap in research of over 70 years, sandfly studies in Kosovo were resumed in 2014. During this presence/absence study, nine sandfly species were detected: Phlebotomus papatasi, Ph. perfiliewi, Ph. tobbi, Ph. neglectus, Ph. simici, Ph. balcanicus, Ph. alexandri, Ph. mascittii and Sergentomyia minuta. Three species are new with regard to the fauna of Kosovo-Ph. alexandri, Ph. balcanicus and Ph. mascittii. Besides increased diversity, changes in the number of collected specimens and distribution range of species were recorded, with Ph. neglectus being the most dominant species with the widest distribution. Testing of randomly chosen females for Leishmania spp. DNA resulted the in detection of L. tropica in a specimen of Ph. neglectus. The presence of numerous vector species in the sandfly fauna of Kosovo pose a threat for the re-emergence of vector-borne diseases. Therefore, continuous surveillance is recommended with regular updates on vector distribution and abundance.

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“…For example, some authors developed qPCR assay for New World species [ 15 , 16 ], while some others tested their primers in Old World species [ 17 , 18 ]. Since different reports describe the infection in travelers [ 19 , 20 ] and in military personnel operating in country endemic for leishmaniasis [ 21 , 22 , 23 ], the availability of a rapid pan -Leishmania assay, highly sensitive and able to provide a quantification and a partial classification, can certainly be useful. Moreover, a pan- Leishmania assay can also be exploited in eco-epidemiological studies, including identification of vectors and reservoirs [ 24 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of a kDNA-Based qPCR Assay for the Detection and Quantification of Old World Leishmania Species

et al. 2020

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The parasite protozoan Leishmania, the causative agent of leishmaniasis, includes two subgenera of medical interest: Leishmania (Leishmania) and Leishmania (Viannia). Parasite species detection and characterization is crucial to choose treatment protocols and to monitor the disease evolution. Molecular approaches can speed up and simplify the diagnostic process. In particular, several molecular assays target the mitochondrial DNA minicircle network (kDNA) that characterizes the Leishmania genus. We previously proposed a qPCR assay targeting kDNA, followed by high resolution melt (HRM) analysis (qPCR-ML) to distinguish L. (L.) infantum and L. (L.) amazonensis from L. Viannia species. Successively, this assay has been integrated with other qPCR assays, to differentiate L. (L.) infantum, L. (L.) amazonensis and L. (L.) mexicana. In this work, we tested the applicability of our qPCR-ML assay on L. (L.) donovani, L. (L.) major, L. (L.) tropica and L. (L.) aethiopica, showing that the qPCR-ML assay can also amplify Old World species, different from L. (L.) infantum, with good quantification limits (1 × 10−4–1 × 10−6 ng/pcr tube). Moreover, we evaluated 11 L. (L.) infantum strains/isolates, evidencing the variability of the kDNA minicircle target molecules among the strains/isolates of the same species, and pointing out the possibility of quantification using different strains as reference. Taken together, these data account for the consideration of qPCR-ML as a quantitative pan-Leishmania assay.

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Leishmania spp. seropositivity in Austrian soldiers returning from the Kosovo

Cited by 9 publications

References 14 publications

Systematic Review: Re‐emergence of human leishmaniasis in the Balkans

Systematic Review: Re‐emergence of human leishmaniasis in the Balkans

Sandfly surveillance and investigation of Leishmania spp. DNA in sandflies in Kosovo

Evaluation of a kDNA-Based qPCR Assay for the Detection and Quantification of Old World Leishmania Species

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