Canine Leishmania spp. infection in two distinct foci of visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis in Tunisia.
Vet Parasitol Reg Stud Reports
; 44: 100906, 2023 09.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37652625
ABSTRACT
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) and zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) caused by Leishmania (L.) infantum and L. major, respectively, are endemic in Tunisia. The aim of the study was to assess canine Leishmania spp. infection prevalence as well as to identify the Leishmania species involved in two well-documented and geographically distinct VL and ZCL foci. One hundred seventy-six dogs were randomly recruited in the VL focus of Sbikha-Zaghouan (nâ¯=â¯100) and the ZCL focus of Echrarda-Nasrallah (nâ¯=â¯76). Physical examination and blood collection were systemically performed. Needle aspiration was done in case of lymph node (LN) enlargement. All sera were tested by ELISA. kDNA RT-PCR was performed on DNA extracts from (i) buffy coats of seropositive dogs and (ii) LN aspirates. Leishmania species identification was done by ITS1 PCR-sequencing. Thirty-three dogs (18.8%) were infected by Leishmania; 30 having anti-Leishmania antibodies and 3 were seronegative dogs with Leishmania DNA in LN aspirates. Prevalence of infection was significantly higher in VL foci than in ZCL foci (27% versus 7.9%, pâ¯=â¯0.002). Leishmania species was identified in 11 dogs and corresponded to L. infantum. Combination of serology and qPCR on LN aspirates seems to be the best option for canine leishmaniasis diagnosis. Infection is more frequent in VL foci and L. infantum is the only identified species.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous
/
Dog Diseases
/
Leishmania
/
Leishmaniasis, Visceral
Type of study:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Animals
Country/Region as subject:
Africa
Language:
En
Journal:
Vet Parasitol Reg Stud Reports
Year:
2023
Document type:
Article