Treatment and Healing of Leishmaniasis in a Wolf in Semi-Captivity Regime from an Educational Center of Zamora Province (Spain)

• Published in: Animals
• Main Authors: Javier Merino-Goyenechea, Jesús Palacios-Alberti, Tomás Yanes-Martínez, María Martínez-Valladares, Rafael Balaña-Fouce
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2024
• Subjects: canine leishmaniasis; Leishmania infantum; wild animals; wolves; semi-captivity; Veterinary medicine; SF600-1100; Zoology; QL1-991; Canis lupus
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14101436; https://doaj.org/article/fc203367dae84b6c828729ba70df0a6c

Leishmaniasis in wild canids is a vector-borne disease caused in Europe by the protozoan parasite Leishmania infantum . To date, there is limited information on clinical signs and laboratory abnormalities in wolves due to leishmaniasis. The current clinical case report described a female Iberian wolf ( Canis lupus signatus ) housed in semi-captivity conditions at the Centro del Lobo Ibérico “Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente”, in Robledo de Sanabria, Zamora (Spain), with an interdigital ulcerous wound at the right forepaw, hyper-gammaglobulinemia, and abnormal liver blood parameters. Definitive serodiagnosis of leishmaniasis was established using antileishmanial serum antibodies and PCR analysis of different biological samples. A gold-standard anti- L. infantum treatment protocol consisting in subcutaneous meglumine antimoniate and oral allopurinol combination was installed. However, the presence of pain at the site of injection due to meglumine antimoniate administration forced its substitution by oral miltefosine. A progressive reduction of the levels of anti- L. infantum serum antibodies and the concentrations of gamma-globulin fraction was detected after antileishmanial treatment as well as a decline of liver GPT. To our knowledge, this is the first case of leishmaniasis diagnosed in a wolf housed in semi-captivity conditions, with the condition subsequently treated and successfully cured.