The first record in the Americas of an autochthonous case of Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi in a domestic cat (Felix catus) from Cotia County, São Paulo State, Brazil.
A case of feline cutaneous leishmaniasis is reported in a domestic cat (Felis catus) as an apparently natural infection in a non-endemic area. Amastigotes were seem in smears of a nodular lesion on the cat's nose. No parasite could be seen in cytological preparations of liver or spleen but DNA obtained from a sample of the spleen produced the expected fragment in a Leishmania specific rDNA based PCR assay. The PCR product, a 520 bp fragment, was sequenced and the nucleotide sequence was identical to that of Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi. These results are surprising since no autochthonous human or canine cases of visceral leishmaniasis have ever been reported from this region. This case suggests that natural transmission of this disease is occurring in this area, and that cats could act as a reservoir of L. (L.) infantum chagasi.
Savani
Elisa San Martin Mouriz
ES
Centro de Controle de Zoonoses do Município de São Paulo, Rua Santa Eulália 86, 02031-020 Santana, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. elisasanmar@ig.com.br
de Oliveira Camargo
Maria Cecília Gibrail
MC
de Carvalho
Marília Russi
MR
Zampieri
Ricardo Andrade
RA
dos Santos
Marcos Gonzaga
MG
D'Auria
Sandra Regina Nicoletti
SR
Shaw
Jeffrey J
JJ
Floeter-Winter
Lucile Maria
LM
D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood; D001938:Brazil; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D002415:Cats; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000662:veterinary; D018314:Leishmania infantum / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development*; D016773:Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics
D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D016054:DNA, Protozoan; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal