Haemoparasitic infections in cattle from a 'Trypanosoma brucei' rhodesiense sleeping sickness endemic district of Eastern Uganda

We carried out a baseline survey of cattle in Kaberamaido district, in the context of controlling the domestic animal reservoir of 'Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense' human African trypanosomiasis (rHAT) towards elimination. Cattle blood was subjected to capillary tube centrifugation followed...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Tropical medicine and infectious disease 2020-03, Vol.5 (1), p.1-10
Main Authors: Matovu, Enock, Mugasa, Claire Mack, Waiswa, Peter, Kitibwa, Annah, Boobo, Alex, Ndung'u, Joseph Mathu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
African trypanosomiasis
animal reservoirs
Cattle
Cattle diseases
Control
elimination
Evaluation
haemoparasites
human african trypanosomiasis
Infections
Medicin och hälsovetenskap
Reservoir animals
Risk factors
Statistics
Surveys
Zoonoses
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Summary:We carried out a baseline survey of cattle in Kaberamaido district, in the context of controlling the domestic animal reservoir of 'Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense' human African trypanosomiasis (rHAT) towards elimination. Cattle blood was subjected to capillary tube centrifugation followed by measurement of the packed cell volume (PCV) and examination of the buffy coat area for motile trypanosomes. Trypanosomes were detected in 561 (21.4%) out of 2621 cattle screened by microscopy. These 561 in addition to 724 apparently trypanosome negative samples with low PCVs (_25%) were transported to the laboratory and tested by PCR targeting the trypanosomal Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS-1) as well as suspect Tick-Borne Diseases (TBDs) including Anaplasmamosis, Babesiosis, and Theileriosis. PCR for 'Anaplasma' sp yielded the highest number of positive animals (45.2%), followed by 'Trypanosoma' sp (44%), 'Theileria' sp (42.4%) and 'Babesia' (26.3%); multiple infections were a common occurrence. Interestingly, 373 (29%) of these cattle with low PCVs were negative by PCR, pointing to other possible causes of aneamia, such as helminthiasis. Among the trypanosome infections classified as 'T. brucei' by ITS-PCR, 5.5% were positive by SRA PCR, and were, therefore, confirmed as 'T. b. rhodesiense'. Efforts against HAT should therefore consider packages that address a range of conditions. This may enhance acceptability and participation of livestock keepers in programs to eliminate this important but neglected tropical disease. In addition, we demonstrated that cattle remain an eminent reservoir for 'T. b. rhodesiense' in eastern Uganda, which must be addressed to sustain HAT elimination.
ISSN:2414-6366
2414-6366
DOI:10.3390/tropicalmed5010024