Prevalence and factors associated with Leishmania infantum infection of dogs from an urban area of Brazil as identified by molecular methods

• Published in: PLoS neglected tropical diseases 2011-08, Vol.5 (8), p.e1291-e1291
• Main Authors: Coura-Vital, Wendel, Marques, Marcos José, Veloso, Vanja Maria, Roatt, Bruno Mendes, Aguiar-Soares, Rodrigo Dian de Oliveira, Reis, Levi Eduardo Soares, Braga, Samuel Leôncio, Morais, Maria Helena Franco, Reis, Alexandre Barbosa, Carneiro, Mariângela
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Antibodies, Protozoan - blood; Brazil - epidemiology; Cross-Sectional Studies; Deoxyribonucleic acid; Diagnosis; DNA; DNA, Protozoan - genetics; Dog Diseases - epidemiology; Dog Diseases - parasitology; Dogs; Endemic Diseases; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Female; Health aspects; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Immunoassays; Infections; Leishmania infantum - classification; Leishmania infantum - genetics; Leishmania infantum - isolation & purification; Leishmaniasis; Leishmaniasis, Visceral - epidemiology; Leishmaniasis, Visceral - parasitology; Leishmaniasis, Visceral - veterinary; Male; Medicine; Methods; Parasitic diseases; Pets; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; Prevalence studies (Epidemiology); Risk Factors; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Socioeconomic Factors; Studies; Tropical diseases; Urban areas; Urbanization; Vector-borne diseases; Veterinary Science
• ISSN: 1935-2735; 1935-2727; 1935-2735
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001291

Various factors contribute to the urbanization of the visceral leishmaniasis (VL), including the difficulties of implementing control measures relating to the domestic reservoir. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of canine visceral leishmaniasis in an urban endemic area in Brazil and the factors associated with Leishmania infantum infection among seronegative and PCR-positive dogs. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Blood samples were collected from 1,443 dogs. Serology was carried out by using two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (Biomanguinhos/FIOCRUZ/RJ and "in house"), and molecular methods were developed, including PCR-RFLP. To identify the factors associated with early stages of infection, only seronegative (n = 1,213) animals were evaluated. These animals were divided into two groups: PCR-positive (n = 296) and PCR-negative (n = 917) for L. infantum DNA. A comparison of these two groups of dogs taking into consideration the characteristics of the animals and their owners was performed. A mixed logistic regression model was used to identify factors associated with L. infantum infection. Of the 1,443 dogs examined, 230 (15.9%) were seropositive in at least one ELISA, whereas PCR-RFLP revealed that 356 animals (24.7%) were positive for L. infantum DNA. Results indicated that the associated factors with infection were family income