Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a zoonotic disease with worldwide distribution. The crab-eating fox (Cerdocyon thous) is considered a wild reservoir of many zoonotical diseases, particularly VL. This study reported the presence of Leishmania infantum amastigotes in different organs of one captive C. thous found dead in a zoo. This animal was positive by the indirect fluorescence antibody test and had many clinical signs of VL. Intracellular amastigote forms of L. infantum were seen in neutrophils and macrophages in sample tissues from skin, lymph nodes (popliteal, submandibular, prescapular, and mesenteric), spleen, and liver. The numbers of positive cells and intracellular parasites were higher in macrophages than in neutrophils. In addition, polymerase chain reaction demonstrated extensive distribution of Leishmania DNA in C. thous tissues from multiple organs. The presence of intracellular amastigotes in neutrophils and macrophages as well as DNA of the parasite in tissues, specifically skin demonstrate that this crab-eating fox is an adequate host for L. infantum and reinforce the importance of VL for symptomatic wild canids kept in captivity in endemic areas.
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1 December 2011
Visceral Leishmaniasis in a Captive Crab-Eating Fox Cerdocyon thous
Michely da Silva Tenório,
Lucio de Oliveira e Sousa,
Mírian dos Santos Paixão,
Maria Fernanda Alves,
Silvana de Cássia Paulan,
Flavia Luna Lima,
Márcia Mariza Gomes Jusi,
Karen Ingrid Tasca,
Rosangela Zacarias Machado,
Wilma Aparecida Starke-Buzetti
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Cerdocyon thous
crab-eating fox
Leishmania infantum
visceral leishmaniasis