Comparative Study of a Novel Lateral Flow Rapid Test with Conventional Serological Test Systems for the Diagnosis of Canine Leishmaniosis in Croatia and Brazil
Rouzbeh Mahdavi,
Franjo Martinkovic,
Hosam Shams-Eldin,
Ingrid E. Pereira,
Alexandre B. Reis,
Andreas Latz,
Daniela Heinz,
Cristina Aira,
Alba Fresco-Taboada,
Elfadil Abass,
Jelena Romero-Olmedo,
Henrique C. Teixeira,
Ulrich Steinhoff
Affiliations
Rouzbeh Mahdavi
Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hospital Hygiene, Phillips University of Marburg, 35043 Marburg, Germany
Franjo Martinkovic
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, HR-1000 Zagreb, Croatia
Hosam Shams-Eldin
Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hospital Hygiene, Phillips University of Marburg, 35043 Marburg, Germany
Ingrid E. Pereira
Department of Parasitology, Microbiology and Immunology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora 36036-900, MG, Brazil
Alexandre B. Reis
School of Pharmacy, Federal University of Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto 35400-000, MG, Brazil
Andreas Latz
Gold Standard Diagnostics Frankfurt (GSD Frankfurt), 63128 Dietzenbach, Germany
Daniela Heinz
Gold Standard Diagnostics Frankfurt (GSD Frankfurt), 63128 Dietzenbach, Germany
Cristina Aira
Gold Standard Diagnostics Madrid S.A. (GSD Madrid), 28037 Madrid, Spain
Alba Fresco-Taboada
Gold Standard Diagnostics Madrid S.A. (GSD Madrid), 28037 Madrid, Spain
Elfadil Abass
Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam 34212, Saudi Arabia
Jelena Romero-Olmedo
Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hospital Hygiene, Phillips University of Marburg, 35043 Marburg, Germany
Henrique C. Teixeira
Department of Parasitology, Microbiology and Immunology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Juiz de Fora 36036-900, MG, Brazil
Ulrich Steinhoff
Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hospital Hygiene, Phillips University of Marburg, 35043 Marburg, Germany
Control of canine infections with Leishmania infantum (L. infantum), a major zoonotic disease in Brazil and southern Europe, is becoming increasingly important due to its close proximity to humans, the increasing import of dogs from endemic regions and the impact of climate change on vector spreading. Simple, rapid and reliable diagnostic tests are therefore needed to detect infected dogs. Here, we re-evaluated different serological methods for the diagnosis of canine leishmaniosis (CanL) in Croatia and Brazil. The diagnostic performance of the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and the VetLine® Leishmania ELISA (GSD Frankfurt, Germany) was compared with three rKLi8.3-based diagnostic test systems, the rKLi8.3 ELISA (GSD Frankfurt, Germany), the INgezim® Leishma CROM (GSD Madrid, Spain) lateral flow test (LFT) and the VetBlot® Leishmania LineBlot (GSD Frankfurt, Germany). CanL symptomatic dogs were efficiently diagnosed by all tests, except the VetLine® Leishmania ELISA, which is based on whole Leishmania antigens. The advantage of rKLi8.3 was also observed in oligo- and asymptomatic dogs from Brazil and Croatia, although with reduced diagnostic efficiency compared to symptomatic dogs. Similar to IFAT and rKLi8.3 ELISA, the LFT did not cross-react with other common canine pathogens; it showed very high specificity for healthy dogs from endemic regions in both countries and did not react with healthy, vaccinated dogs in Brazil. In conclusion, serodiagnostic tests based on the rKLi8.3 antigens are superior to whole parasite antigens, and the LFT has the advantage of providing a laboratory-independent, rapid and specific diagnosis of CanL.
