Abstract
Feline leishmanial infection is reported worldwide, but the epidemiological role of domestic cats in the leishmaniasis cycle remains unclear, and cats might act as cryptic reservoir hosts in endemic areas with no feline leishmaniosis cases. Considering that, a serological screening for anti-Leishmania spp. antibodies was performed by indirect immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT) in 389 necropsied cats’ serum samples from a new visceral leishmaniasis transmission area with no feline leishmanial infection reported to unveil if the cats are being exposed to the parasite. The overall seroprevalence for Leishmania spp. was 11.05% (43/389). No association was found between sex, neutering status, age group, breed, coat length, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) infection, and Leishmania spp. antibody detection. A positive association was found with coat color (cats within the orange spectrum with white [particolor]) (OR = 2.47, CI 95% 1 – 6.13, P = 0.044) and a negative association (OR = 0.38, CI 95% 0.18 – 0.79, P = 0.01) between feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infection and IFAT positivity for Leishmania spp. Therefore, it is concluded that the seroprevalence found was greater than 10%, indicating contact of the protozoan with cats in the region served.
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This work was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior – Brasil (CAPES) – Finance Code 001.
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This work was financially supported by the Brazilian funding agency Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) – Financial Code 001. Gabriela Hartmann received a scholarship from CAPES (88887.605289/2021–00).
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All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by Gabriela Hartmann, Douglas Miotto Lorenzetti, Alana Pivoto Herbichi, Matheus Yuri dos Santos, Renata Dalcol Mazaro, and Rafael Almeida Fighera. Gabriela Hartmann, Douglas Miotto Lorenzetti, and Alexandre Alberto Tonin were responsible for data analysis and statistics. The indirect immunofluorescence antibody tests were performed by Gabriela Hartmann, Isac Junior Roman, and Fernanda Silveira Flôres Vogel. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Gabriela Hartmann, and all authors reviewed and commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Hartmann, G., Roman, I.J., Lorenzetti, D.M. et al. Anti-Leishmania spp. antibody detection in domestic cats from a visceral leishmaniasis transmission area. Parasitol Res 122, 2631–2639 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-07961-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-07961-w