Abstract
Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a disease caused by the protozoa Leishmania infantum and can cause an inflammatory reaction in the gastrointestinal tract, however the role of granulocytic cells (neutrophils, eosinophils, and mast cells) in the intestine of dogs infected is not fully understood. We performed a quantitative analysis these cells in the intestinal wall of dogs with canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL). Twenty dogs were assigned to one of three groups: group 1 (G1, n=8), dogs with CVL and L. infantum amastigotes in the intestine; group 2 (G2, n=9), dogs with CVL but without intestinal amastigotes; and group 3 (G3, n=3), uninfected dogs (control group). Granulocytic cells were counted in the crypt-villus unit (mucosa), submucosa, and muscle layer of the intestinal mucosa. Cell counts were higher in the intestinal wall of dogs from G2 followed by G1 and G3 (p≤0.05). In G1, there was a low inverse correlation between parasite burden of the small intestine and granulocyte counts (r= -0.1, p≤0.01). However, in G2 dogs, mast cell and eosinophil numbers showed positive correlation (r=0.85, p≤0.01). The granulocytic cell hyperplasia observed in the intestine of L. infantum-infected dogs suggests that these cells may be involved in the cell-mediated immune response for parasite elimination.
Highlights
Canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) is a parasitic disease caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania (ROSS, 1903)
The numbers of neutrophils and eosinophils were significantly higher in the small intestine than in the large intestine in both groups (G1 and G2), but mast cell counts were similar in the small and large intestines
Mast cells were abundantly distributed in the lamina propria of the villi and crypts (Figure 1A and 1B), and in the SB and muscle layer (ML), where they were seen associated with the myenteric nervous plexus (Figure 1C)
Summary
Canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) is a parasitic disease caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania (ROSS, 1903). L. chagasi) is the causative agent of visceral leishmaniasis in the New World, with endemic regions extending from southern USA to northern Argentina, including Brazil (KUHLS et al, 2011). The main route of transmission to humans and animals is through the bite of the sandfly species Lutzomyia (L.) longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae) (PORROZZI et al, 2006). Classic canine leishmaniasis appears clinically as a chronic wasting disease, with anemia, cutaneous lesions, generalized lymphadenopathy, glomerulonephritis, epistaxis, chronic colitis, hemorrhagic diarrhea, arthritis, ophthalmic lesions, keratoconjunctivitis or uveitis (FERRER et al, 1991; CIARAMELLA et al, 1997; BLAVIER et al, 2001; TAFURI et al, 2001)
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