title: Environmental Factors and Ecosystems Associated with Canine Visceral Leishmaniasis in Northeastern Brazil.
abstract: Environment influences the composition, distribution, and behavior of the vectors and mammalian hosts involved in the transmission of visceral leishmaniasis (VL), affecting the epidemiology of the disease. In Brazil, the urbanization process and canine cases of VL are indicators for local health authorities. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of the canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) in Maranhão State, Brazil. Blood samples collected from 960 dogs from six municipalities and six different ecosystems (Baixada Maranhense, Mangue, Mata dos Cocais, Amazônia, Cerrado, and Restinga) to serological tests (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA], indirect fluorescence antibody test [IFAT], and chromatographic immunoassay methods [Dual Path Platform technology, DPP(®)]) and parasitological diagnosis. From serological tests, 11.14% (107) of the dogs were positive for CVL, with 59.16% (568), 14.5% (148), and 131% (126) positives to ELISA, DPP, and IFAT tests, respectively. Only seven animals (0.73%) were positive in a parasitological test. We also performed parasite isolation and phylogenetic characterization. All isolates of dogs obtained from Maranhão were grouped in a single branch with Leishmania infantum chagasi from Brazil. The ecosystem Amazonia presented the highest positivity rates to CVL in serological and parasitological tests. Brazilian biomes/ecosystems suffer large degradation and may favor, depending on climatic conditions, the installation of new diseases. In the case of VL, dogs are reservoirs of parasites and sentinels for human infection.
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Andréa Pereira
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: da Costa
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Francisco Borges
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Herbert Sousa
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Diego Garcia
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Ramirez
authors.affiliation: 2 Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco , Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brasil .
authors.forename: Andreina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: de Carvalho Araújo
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Juliana Isabel Giuli
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: da Silva Ferreira
authors.affiliation: 3 Universidade Federal do ABC , São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Renata
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tonhosolo
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Ricardo Augusto
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Dias
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Solange Maria
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Gennari
authors.affiliation: 1 Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de São Paulo , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .|3 Universidade Federal do ABC , São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo, Brasil .|4 Universidade de Santo Amaro , São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil .
authors.forename: Arlei
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marcili
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood*; D001483:Base Sequence; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology; D004285:Dogs; D017753:Ecosystem; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000662:veterinary; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000662:veterinary; D005843:Geography; D006801:Humans; D018314:Leishmania infantum / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D012307:Risk Factors; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000662:veterinary; D015047:Zoonoses
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan
keywords: Brazil; Canine visceral leishmaniasis; Leishmania infantum chagasi; Parasite isolation; Phylogenetic characterization; Serological testing