PARTICIPATION OF TICKS IN THE INFECTIOUS CYCLE OF CANINE VISCERAL LEISHMANIASIS, IN TERESINA, PIAUÍ, BRAZIL

• Published in: Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo
• Main Authors: José Henrique Furtado Campos, Francisco Assis Lima Costa
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade de São Paulo (USP) 2014
• Subjects: Rhipicephalus sanguineus; Canis familiaris; Leishmania spp; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Infectious and parasitic diseases; RC109-216; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0036-46652014000400005; https://doaj.org/article/e5ea8884472e4a0dbb939635134a6043

In this study, we detected Leishmania spp. infection in R. sanguineus collected from dogs that were naturally infected with L. (L.) infantum. We examined 35 dogs of both sexes and unknown ages. The infected dogs were serologically positive by the immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and Quick Test-DPP (Dual Path Platform), as well as parasitological examination of a positive skin biopsy or sternal bone marrow aspiration. Ten negative dogs were included as controls. The ticks that infested these dogs were collected in pools of 10 adult females per animal. The PCR was performed with specific primers for Leishmania spp., which amplified a 720-bp fragment. Of the 35 analyzed samples, a product was observed in eight samples (8/35; 22.9%). We conclude that the presence of parasite DNA suggests that ticks participate in the zoonotic cycle of canine visceral leishmaniasis, in the city of Teresina, Piauí.