Acute Phase Proteins in Dogs with Natural Infection by Trypanosoma cruzi

Abstract

Acute phase proteins have been used as tools for the diagnosis, monitoring, and prognosis of several diseases in domestic animals. However, the dynamics of these proteins in infection by Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease in dogs, is still unknown. The aim of this study was to determine concentrations of acute phase proteins (C-reactive protein, haptoglobin, ferritin and paraoxonase-1) in dogs in a coastal town of Ecuador, with natural Trypanosoma cruzi infection with or without seroreactivity of Ehrlichia canis, Ehrlichia ewingii, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Anaplasma platys, Borrelia burgdorferi and Dirofilaria immitis. For the detection of Trypanosoma cruzi serum antibodies, two different antigen-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests were implemented. For the detection of seroreactivity of Ehrlichia canis, Ehrlichia ewingii, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Anaplasma platys, Borrelia burgdorferi and Dirofilaria immitis, an IDEXX SNAP® 4Dx® test was used. To determine the concentration of C-reactive protein and ferritin, an immunoturbidimetric assay was used; haptoglobin concentration was measured using a commercial colorimetric method validated in dogs; a spectrophotometric method was used to determine the serum concentration of paraoxonase-1. Results showed a reduction in the serum levels of paraoxonase-1 in Trypanosoma cruzi-seroreactive dogs, either with or without seroreactivity to other vector-borne diseases. A serum ferritin increment was observed in Trypanosoma cruzi-seroreactive dogs with seroreactivity to any other vector-borne diseases. Our findings suggest that paraoxonase-1 levels are reduced in Trypanosoma cruzi-seroreactive dogs without evident clinical signs of Chagas disease, despite their seroreactivity to the other vector-borne diseases studied. These findings could indicate an oxidative stress response in Trypanosoma cruzi-seroreactive dogs with no evident signs of inflammation.

Chagas Disease Control—Many Approaches to Prospect

“…In this context, different approaches were addressed in this Special Issue relating to Chagas disease control. In the diagnosis field, Rivadeneira-Barreiro and co-workers [ 8 ] focused on the study of T. cruzi acute phase proteins in infected dogs in a coastal town in Ecuador as a means for the diagnosis, monitoring and prognosis of the parasite infection, implying that reduced paraoxonase-1 levels are suggestive of an oxidative stress response in seroreactive animals with no evident signs of inflammation. The research group of Simone Kann and collaborators [ 9 ] showed that electrocardiogram alterations, although nonspecific, can be considered an early indicator in Chagas disease screening, as detected in indigenous populations in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, in Colombia, leading to the early treatment of the disease.…”