Survey of antibodies to Leishmania spp. in wild canids from Pennsylvania and Tennessee.
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a zoonosis with worldwide distribution. Infections with the Leishmania donovani complex, including Leishmania infantum, cause the VL. Domestic dogs are the most important reservoir host for human VL, and wild canids are also susceptible. In the United States, infections with L. infantum are common in the foxhound dog breed. Little information is available regarding L. infantum in wild canids in the Unites States. Sera from 11 foxes and 256 coyotes originating in Pennsylvania and Tennessee (USA) were tested for antibodies to visceralizing Leishmania spp. with rapid immunochromatographic dipstick assays, which utilize recombinant antigen K39. Anti-Leishmania spp. antibodies were found in 5 of 267 (1.9%) of wild canids from Pennsylvania, including four coyotes and one red fox. These results suggest that wild canids are exposed to Leishmania spp. at a low level in the United States.
Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte, NC 28216, USA. acrosypal@jcsu.edu
Alexa C
AC
Rosypal
Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte, NC 28216, USA.
Andrew
A
Alexander
Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte, NC 28216, USA.
Darrica
D
Byrd
Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania 17257, USA.
Melanie
M
Weaver
Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania 17257, USA.
Richard
R
Stewart
Department of Biomedical and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA.
Richard
R
Gerhold
Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, University of Tennessee, Ames Plantation, Grand Junction, TN 39039, USA.
Allan
A
Houston
United States Department of Agriculture, Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17106, USA.
Kyle
K
Van Why
United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, Building 1001, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.
Jitender P
JP
Dubey
D000818:Animals; D046029:Coyotes; D005589:Foxes; D007891:Leishmania / Q000276:immunology*; D007896:Leishmaniasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D010414:Pennsylvania / Q000453:epidemiology; D013714:Tennessee / Q000453:epidemiology