Immunohistochemical diagnosis of Trypanosoma vivax in experimentally infected sheep tissues

Abstract

Trypanosoma vivax is one of the main species responsible for animal African trypanosomiasis in West Africa and has a marked economic impact on livestock in Sub-Saharan Africa and South America endemic countries. In this work, T. vivax was demonstrated by immunohistochemical technique in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded in tissues of experimentally infected sheep using polyclonal antibodies produced against formalin-fixed trypomastigotes. T. vivax was observed within multiple small and medium-size vessels from multiple organs, including the liver and kidneys. The immunostaining was evidenced in an intense cherry red. This is the first immunohistochemical experiment that shows T. vivax in fixed tissues.