Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Dogs Harbor Leishmania braziliensis and Participate in the Transmission Cycle of Human Tegumentary Leishmaniasis

Jamile Lago
,
Deborah Fraga
ORCID logo ,
Lívia Coelho
,
Matheus Silva de Jesus
,
Bruna Leite
,
Guilherme L. Werneck
,
Sergio Arruda
,
Ednaldo Lago
,
Edgar M. Carvalho
ORCID logo ,
Olivia Bacellar
* ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 22 June 2023 / Approved: 23 June 2023 / Online: 23 June 2023 (12:11:10 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Lago, J.; Fraga, D.; Coelho, L.; Jesus, M.S.; Leite, B.; Werneck, G.L.; Arruda, S.; Lago, E.; Carvalho, E.M.; Bacellar, O. Dogs Harbor Leishmania braziliensis and Participate in the Transmission Cycle of Human Tegumentary Leishmaniasis. Pathogens 2023, 12, 981. Lago, J.; Fraga, D.; Coelho, L.; Jesus, M.S.; Leite, B.; Werneck, G.L.; Arruda, S.; Lago, E.; Carvalho, E.M.; Bacellar, O. Dogs Harbor Leishmania braziliensis and Participate in the Transmission Cycle of Human Tegumentary Leishmaniasis. Pathogens 2023, 12, 981.

Abstract

Dogs play an important role in the transmission of Leishmania infantum but epidemiologic and clinical studies of canine tegumentary leishmaniasis (CTL) are scarce. In an endemic area of human American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis (ATL) caused by Leishmania braziliensis, we determine the prevalence and incidence of both CTL and subclinical (SC) L. braziliensis infection in dogs and evaluated if the presence of dogs with the CTL or the SC L. braziliensis infection is associated with the occurrence of human ATL. SC infection in healthy animals and CTL in animals with ulcers was determined by PCR on biopsied healthy skin or on the ulcer or detecting antibodies against soluble leishmania antigen. We compared the occurrence of human ATL in homes with dogs with CTL or SC infection with control homes without dogs or with dogs without CTL or SC infection. The prevalence of SC infection was 35% and of CTL 31%. The incidence of SC infection in dogs was 4.6% and of CTL was 9.3%. The frequency of ATL in humans was 50% in homes with infected dogs and 13% in homes without L. braziliensis infection in dogs. CTL and SC infection is highly prevalent, and dogs may participate in the transmission chain of L. braziliensis.

Keywords

canine tegumentary leishmaniasis; canine subclinical infection; Leishmania braziliensis; Human American Tegumentary Leishmaniasis

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Parasitology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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