Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (Jan 2015)

Prevalence of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis in dogs in an endemic area of Brazil

  • Danillo de Souza Pimentel,
  • Rafael Antonio Nascimento Ramos,
  • Marília de Andrade Santana,
  • Carina Scanoni Maia,
  • Gílcia Aparecida de Carvalho,
  • Hernande Pereira da Silva,
  • Leucio Câmara Alves

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1590/0037-8682-0224-2014
Journal volume & issue
no. 0
pp. 00 – 00

Abstract

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INTRODUCTION: The northeast region of Brazil is endemic for zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (ZVL). The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of infection in dogs in Petrolina. METHODS: Blood samples were collected from dogs (n = 600), and bone-marrow biopsy was performed in animals with positive serological test results that presented clinical signs of ZVL. The serological analyses were performed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (S7(r)Biogene). RESULTS: Of the 600 dogs tested, 19% (115/600) presented anti-L. infantum chagasi antibodies. CONCLUSIONS: Our data are important because canine infection is an important risk factor for the human disease.

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