Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Detecting subclinical Leishmania infantum infection in dogs
By Julia Ramos Sampaio et al.·Published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science·2021·Laboratório de Imunologia e Biologia Molecular, Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, Brazil, CH·View original on DOAJ →
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Original publication title: Leishmania infantum-Derived Glycoinositolphospholipids in the Immunodiagnosis of Subclinically Infected Dogs
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study found that a specific test using glycoinositolphospholipids (GIPLs) could help detect Leishmania infantum infection in dogs, even in those showing no symptoms. While this test identified 80% of subclinically infected dogs, it was less reliable than another method using lipophosphoglycan (LPG), with some false positives in dogs infected with other parasites. The GIPL test may be useful in areas where these other infections are not present, but its lower sensitivity and specificity limit its overall effectiveness.
People also search for: dog leishmaniasis test · symptoms of leishmania in dogs · canine leishmaniasis diagnosis
Abstract
Lipophosphoglycan (LPG), when used as an ELISA target, confers high specificity and sensitivity to the detection of Leishmania infantum antibodies in dogs. Glycoconjugates are economically viable because the yield is very high after extraction/purification. In addition, they are very stable, which allows their use in point-of-care testing without special storage conditions. During the glycoconjugate extraction, a glycoinositolphospholipid (GIPL)-enriched fraction is obtained in similar quantities as LPG. Since GIPLs can be extracted from the same parasite pellet as LPGs, this work aimed to evaluate the immune recognition of GIPLs by Leishmania infantum-infected dogs and its use for canine leishmaniasis (CanL) immunodiagnosis. Like LPG, GIPLs were recognized by sera from L. infantum-infected dogs, but with less sensitivity (83.8%). However, 80% (16/20) of subclinically infected dogs were detected as positive in the assay. Different from LPG, the GIPL-based assay achieved a lower specificity (73.7%) and cross-reactions occurred with T. cruzi and L. braziliensis-infected dogs. Although GIPLs exhibited a similar performance to LPG for subclinically L. infantum-infected dogs, the occurrence of cross-reactivities with other protozoa and a lower sensitivity hinders its use for an immunodiagnostic test. In places where those diseases do not co-exist such as in the Mediterranean region, its use for subclinically dogs could be an alternative.
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Search related cases →Original publication on DOAJ: https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2021.581148