Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis isolated from the saliva of patients in a cutaneous leishmaniasis-endemic area of northeastern Brazil.

Maria Edileuza Felinto De Brito,Angela Cristina Rapela Medeiros,Eduardo Henrique Gomes Rodrigues,Joanna Lucia De Almeida Alexandre,Sinval Pinto Brandão-Filho,Ericka Lima Almeida,Bruna Santos Lima Figueiredo Sá,Roberto Pereira Werkhäuser

doi:10.1590/0074-02760170250

Maria Edileuza Felinto De Brito, Angela Cristina Rapela Medeiros + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/0074-02760170250

Copy DOI

Abstract

Several studies have described the use of non-invasive collection methods, mostly based on the detection of parasite DNA, for diagnosis. However, no Leishmania specimens have been isolated from saliva. Here, we report the first isolation of Leishmania braziliensis from the saliva of humans with cutaneous leishmaniasis but without lesions on their mucosa. The isolates were obtained from salivary fluid inoculated in hamsters and were tested by multilocus enzyme electrophoresis. Seven samples from 43 patients suspected of having the disease were identified for in vivo culture. These findings suggest that saliva is a clinical sample that allows the isolation of Leishmania sp.

Highlights

American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) has a wide spectrum of clinical signs and symptoms, and many species of Leishmania are implicated as etiologic agents of this disease (Weigle & Saraiva 1996)
Clinical manifestations range from unapparent disease to skin lesions that may spontaneously resolve to multiple ulcerations and affected mucosa, which is associated with a high risk of disease recurrence and death (Costa et al 2009)
This parasite is capable of producing the range of clinical manifestations, including cutaneous leishmaniasis, mucosal leishmaniasis, and disseminated cutaneous leishmaniasis (Costa et al 2009)

Summary

Introduction

American cutaneous leishmaniasis (ACL) has a wide spectrum of clinical signs and symptoms, and many species of Leishmania are implicated as etiologic agents of this disease (Weigle & Saraiva 1996). Leishmania braziliensis is the primary and most prevalent pathogen associated with this disease in Brazil. This parasite is capable of producing the range of clinical manifestations, including cutaneous leishmaniasis (which may be spontaneously cured), mucosal leishmaniasis (with invasive ulcers), and disseminated cutaneous leishmaniasis (Costa et al 2009). (Viannia) braziliensis, which is the predominant species in vectors that circulate in Pernambuco, Brazil, in different clinical samples (Brito et al 2009). Multilocus enzyme electrophoresis (MLEE) is considered the gold standard for identifying Leishmania species It allows the identification of isolates based on phenotypic polymorphisms of enzymes (Banuls et al 2007, Schonian et al 2010).

Objectives

Methods