Article
Frequency of co-seropositivities for certain pathogens and their relationship with clinical and histopathological changes and parasite load in dogs infected with Leishmania infantum
Registro en:
OLIVEIRA, Valéria da Costa et al. Frequency of co-seropositivities for certain pathogens and their relationship with clinical and histopathological changes and parasite load in dogs infected with Leishmania infantum. Plos One, v.16 n. 3, p. 1–20, 2021
1932-6203
10.1371/ journal.pone.0247560
Autor
Oliveira, Valéria da Costa
Mendes Junior, Artur Augusto Velho
Ferreira, Luiz Claudio
Calvet, Tatiana Machado Quinates
Santos, Shanna Araujo dos
Figueiredo, Fabiano Borges
Campos, Monique Paiva
Rodrigues, Francisco das Chagas de Carvalho
Oliveira, Raquel de Vasconcellos Carvalhaes de
Lemos, Elba Regina Sampaio de
Rozental, Tatiana
Silva, Raphael Gomes da
Amendoeira, Maria Regina Reis
Teles-de-Freitas, Rayane
Bruno, Rafaela Vieira
Morgado, Fernanda Nazaré
Miranda, Luciana de Freitas Campos
Menezes, Rodrigo Caldas
Resumen
In canine leishmaniosis caused by the protozoan Leishmania infantum, little is known about how co-infections with or co-seropositivities for other pathogens can influence aggravation of this disease. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to evaluate the frequency of coinfections with or co-seropositivities for certain pathogens in dogs seropositive for L. infantum and their relationship with clinical signs, histological changes and L. infantum load. Sixty-six L. infantum-seropositive dogs were submitted to clinical examination, collection of blood and bone marrow, culling, and necropsy. Antibodies against Anaplasma spp., Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, Ehrlichia spp. and Toxoplasma gondii and Dirofilaria immitis antigens were investigated in serum. Samples from different tissues were submitted to histopathology and immunohistochemistry for the detection of Leishmania spp. and T. gondii. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to assess the L. infantum load in spleen samples. For detection of Coxiella burnetii, conventional PCR and nested PCR were performed using
bone marrow samples. All 66 dogs tested positive for L. infantum by qPCR and/or culture. Fifty dogs (76%) were co-seropositive for at least one pathogen: T. gondii (59%), Ehrlichia spp., (41%), and Anaplasma spp. (18%). Clinical signs were observed in 15 (94%) dogs monoinfected with L. infantum and in 45 (90%) dogs co-seropositive for certain pathogens. The L. infantum load in spleen and skin did not differ significantly between monoinfected and co-seropositive dogs. The number of inflammatory cells was higher in the spleen, lung and mammary gland of co-seropositive dogs and in the mitral valve of monoinfected dogs. These results suggest that dogs infected with L. infantum and co-seropositive for certain pathogens are common in the region studied. However, co-seropositivities for certain pathogens did not aggravate clinical signs or L. infantum load, although they were associated with a more intense inflammatory reaction in some organs.