title: Serological Evidence of Infection by Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum (Synonym: Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi) in Free-Ranging Wild Mammals in a Nonendemic Region of the State of São Paulo, Brazil.
abstract: Concerns about the interface between wildlife, domestic animals, and humans in the transmission of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) have been growing due to natural or anthropogenic environmental changes. In this context, investigations of the infection in wild mammals are important to assess their exposure to the vector and the parasite. A study of anti-Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum antibodies was carried out using the direct agglutination test (DAT) on 528 free-ranging wild mammals of 38 species from the region of Botucatu, state of São Paulo, Brazil, a municipality that has no records of the vector or of human or canine autochthony. Antibodies were detected, with a cutoff of 1:320, in 9/528 (1.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.6-2.8%) mammals of the species Callithrix jacchus, Lepus europaeus, Sphiggurus villosus, Nasua nasua, Eira barbara, and Galictis cuja, with high titers (≥1280) for the last three. These three are little-studied species, and previous records of the detection of anti-Leishmania spp. antibodies in Brazil exist only for coatis (N. nasua), whereas worldwide, infection by L. (L.) infantum has been confirmed only in hares (Le. europaeus). On the other hand, opossums and canids, the species most commonly reported to be naturally infected by L. (L.) infantum, were not seropositive. Fifty-eight (58/528; 10.9%) mammals were found to have antibody titers ranging from 20 to 160 and were not included among the seropositive animals due to the adopted cutoff. However, the possibility of infection in these animals should not be discarded, because there is no standard cutoff point for the different wild species. Our findings indicate the need for investigations into the exact role of the seropositive species in the epidemiology of VL and for effective epidemiological surveillance to prevent its expansion, because even in regions where there are no records of canine or human autochthonous cases, there may be parasite circulation among wild mammals.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .|5 Present address: Department of Public Health, School of Medical Sciences, State University of Campinas-UNICAMP , Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Laís Moraes
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Paiz
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Felipe
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fornazari
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Benedito Donizete
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Menozzi
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Gabriela Capriogli
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Carla Janeiro
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Coiro
authors.affiliation: 2 Center for Wildlife Medicine and Research, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Carlos Roberto
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Teixeira
authors.affiliation: 3 Environmental Health Surveillance, Botucatu Municipal Secretariat of Health , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Valdinei Moraes Campanucci
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Public Health, School of Medical Sciences, State University of Campinas-UNICAMP , Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Maria Rita
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Donalisio
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Veterinary Medicine and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University-UNESP , Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil .
authors.forename: Helio
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Langoni
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000662:veterinary; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests; D018314:Leishmania infantum / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008322:Mammals / Q000469:parasitology*
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan
keywords: Leishmaniasis; Serology–Direct agglutination test; Wild animals