Antibody occurrence of Anti-Toxoplasma gondii, Leishmania sp. and Ehrlichia canis in dogs in Bahia State

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis, leishmaniasis, and ehrlichiosis are zoonoses that have cosmopolitan distribution and cause important clinical changes in dogs and humans. Dogs are important in the epidemiology and transmission of Leishmania infantum and Ehrlichia canis and serve as indicators of environmental contamination by the transmission of Toxoplasma gondii. The aim of this study was to detect antibodies against T. gondii, Leishmania spp., and E. canis in dogs from Bahia and identify the risk factors associated with infections. Blood samples were collected from 353 dogs from several municipalities of Bahia and the sera were tested using reaction of indirect immunofluorescence (RIFI) for T. gondii and Leishmania spp. and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for E. canis. The data were tabulated and analyzed using EPI-INFO 7.1.5 program. Of 353 samples analyzed, 144 (40.8%) were positive for T. gondii (antibody titer 16-4,096) and 92 (26.1%) were seropositive for Leishmania spp. (antibody titer 40-160). The seropositivity for E. canis was the highest as compared to that of the other agents. Furthermore, 184 (52.1%) samples were positive for antibodies against E. canis. Sixteen (4.5%), 71 (20.1%), and 25 (7.1%) samples were co-infected with T. gondii and Leishmania spp., T. gondii and E. canis, and E. canis and Leishmania spp., respectively, while 20 (5.7%) dogs presented co-seropositivity for all three etiological agents. Risk factors such as age, sex, habitat (stray/not stray), and region of dog’s origin were analyzed; age ( ? 1 year) was significantly associated with T. gondii (p = 0.03) and E. canis (p = 0.02) infection and stray animals were more exposed to T. gondii (p = 0.03) and Leishmania spp. (p = 0.01) infection. The results confirmed the heterogeneous distribution of the three etiological agents in dogs from Bahia and identified animals with co-infections.

Seropositivity of Anti-Toxoplasma gondii Antibodies in Owners and Their Dogs Living on Island and Mainland Seashore Areas of Southern Brazil

“…Dogs have also been proposed as toxoplasmosis sentinels for human infection, mostly due to sharing inhouse spaces and related exposure to food and water sources [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. The overall seropositivity in dogs in this study (23.3%) was lower than the 40.8% in Bahia State, northeastern Brazil [ 48 ], 40.0% [ 10 ] and the 25.4% in Sao Paulo State, southeastern Brazil [ 8 ], the 36.5% in Bahia State, northeastern Brazil [ 49 ], the 34% in Rio de Janeiro State, southeastern Brazil [ 50 ], and the 32.7% in southern and central-western Brazil [ 28 ]; only higher than the 16.3% [ 27 ] and the 7.95% in the same Parana State, southern Brazil [ 9 ]. In addition, the observed seropositivity herein was lower than the 72.7% in Cuba [ 7 ] and higher than the 18.6% [ 51 ] and the 21.6% in China [ 52 ].…”

Epidemiology of canine visceral leishmaniasis in a vulnerable region in Brazil

“…Ferreira et al (2007) applied indirect immunofluorescence and ELISA and observed cross-reactivity with canine leishmaniasis in dogs infected with T. cruzi, L. braziliensis and E. canis. A study involving 353 dogs carried out in the state of Bahia by Deiró et al (2018) compared the occurrence of anti-E. canis antibodies, Leishmania spp. and T. gondii.…”

Seroprevalence of Neospora caninum and Toxoplasma gondii in dogs from an urban area of North-eastern Brazil: a spatial approach

“…Consequently, several studies have been conducted to improve the serological detection of these pathogens using anti-N. caninum and anti-T. gondii antibodies in dogs. Based on these serological tests, the prevalence of N. caninum in Brazil may range from 1.16-43.1% 7 , while the prevalence of T. gondii in dogs from different Brazilian regions may range from 9.6-63.5% 8 .…”