title: Eco-epidemiology of visceral leishmaniasis in the urban area of Paracatu, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.
abstract: The present study was developed in the urban area of Paracatu, an endemic city for the American visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil. A six-month canine survey was performed with 6295 domiciled dogs in 28 districts in that area and showed that 4.2% of those (267 dogs) were positive for VL by ELISA and IFAT serum assays. Prevalence ratios for canine VL varied between 1.2% and 16.1%, depending on the district under investigation. Fifteen dogs - 80% of which were clinically asymptomatic for VL - were submitted to a more detailed study that comprised direct parasitological examination and Leishmania kDNA amplification of tissue samples as well as two PCR-RFLP methods using myelocultures. Leishmania amastigotes or Leishmania DNA were detected in all dogs but one. The infecting species of Leishmania was identified in about 50% (7/15) of the sample dogs: Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi in two of them and, unexpectedly, Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis in the remaining five. Three months after the end of confiscation and elimination of the VL-seropositive dogs in the 28 districts of Paracatu, a systematic entomological survey was performed in five of them. Six hundred and sixty five (665) phlebotomine sand flies were captured in total, from which 89.5% were identified as Lutzomyia longipalpis. The population density of that species increased during the rainy season. Other thirteen (13) species of phlebotomine sand flies were captured at varying percentages from 0.2 to 5.0%. It is worth noting that L. longipalpis females were predominantely intradomicile when compared to males, suggesting that the VL transmission cycle in Paracatu may be occurring inside home.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Leishmaniases, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou/Fiocruz, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. edel@cpqrr.fiocruz.br
authors.forename: Edelberto Santos
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Dias
authors.forename: Shara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Regina-Silva
authors.forename: João Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: França-Silva
authors.forename: Gustavo Fontes
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Paz
authors.forename: Erika Monteiro
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Michalsky
authors.forename: Simone Costa
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Araújo
authors.forename: Josiane Lopes
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Valadão
authors.forename: Fabiana
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: de Oliveira Lara-Silva
authors.forename: Fernanda Santos
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: de Oliveira
authors.forename: Raquel Silva
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Pacheco
authors.forename: Consuelo Latorre
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Fortes-Dias
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002947:Cities; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology*; D004285:Dogs; D017753:Ecosystem; D005260:Female; D007891:Leishmania / Q000145:classification; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D011576:Psychodidae