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. 2023 Jan 13:12:1050339.
doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.1050339. eCollection 2022.

Leishmania infantum infecting the carnivore Nasua nasua from urban forest fragments in an endemic area of visceral leishmaniasis in Brazilian Midwest

Gabriel Carvalho de Macedo  1 , Wanessa Teixeira Gomes Barreto  1 , Carina Elisei de Oliveira  1   2 , Filipe Martins Santos  1 , Grasiela Edith de Oliveira Porfírio  1 , Samanta Cristina das Chagas Xavier  3 , Fernanda Moreira Alves  3   4 , Alanderson Rodrigues da Silva  2 , Gisele Braziliano de Andrade  1 , Andreza Castro Rucco  1 , William Oliveira de Assis  1 , Ana Maria Jansen  3 , André Luiz Rodrigues Roque  3 , Heitor Miraglia Herrera  1   2
Affiliations

Leishmania infantum infecting the carnivore Nasua nasua from urban forest fragments in an endemic area of visceral leishmaniasis in Brazilian Midwest

Gabriel Carvalho de Macedo et al. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of the present study was to investigate the occurrence of Leishmania infantum in South American coatis inhabiting two forest fragments in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Midwest region of Brazil, an endemic area of human and canine visceral leishmaniasis (VL).

Material and methods: A total of 110 South American coatis were sampled in the conservation unit "Parque Estadual do Prosa" (PEP) and in the residential area "Vila da Base Aérea" (VBA) from March 2018 to April 2019. As a longitudinal study that include up to six recaptures of the same individual, a total of 190 capture events were obtained. Blood, bone marrow and skin samples were obtained for parasitological (axenic culture), serological (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay - ELISA and Dual-path Platform immunoassay - DPP® CVL) and molecular diagnostic assays (targeting kDNA for Leishmania spp. and L. infantum; and HSP70 followed by sequence analysis).

Results: Seropositivity for L. infantum was found in 33 individuals, six in PEP and 27 in VBA. Furthermore, L. infantum was detected by molecular analysis in 16 individuals, seven from PEP and nine from VBA. We also isolated L. infantum from bone marrow of one individual and detected a single positive skin sample in molecular assay from other individual, both from VBA.

Discussion: An overall infection rate of 36.4% (40/110) was observed, significantly higher in the VBA (49.1%) than in the PEP (21.6%), probably because VBA presents: (i) a large number of resident dogs and chickens that would be attracting sandflies; (ii) a denser population of this wild mammal species; and (iii) physical barriers and a lack of functional connectivity in the surroundings, preventing these animals to disperse out. We conclude that South American coati populations living in urban forest fragments of Campo Grande are affected by the epidemiological scenario of VL, known to involve dogs, vectors and humans. We highlight the importance of investigate the parasitism by L. infantum in this and other potential L. infantum reservoirs that inhabit urbanized regions endemic to VL.

Keywords: Leishmania infantum; South American coati; longitudinal study; urban fauna; visceral leishmaniasis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A) Geographical location of the study areas in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Midwest Brazil; (B) Conservation unit “Parque Estadual do Prosa” and its adjacent areas “Parque dos Poderes” and “Parque das Naç ões Indígenas”; (C) Complex “Vila da Base Aeríea”.
Figure 2
Figure 2
South American coatis (Nasua nasua) in the conservation unit “Parque Estadual do Prosa” (PEP) and in the residential area “Vila da Base Aérea” (VBA) at Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Midwest Brazil. (A) South American coatis crossing paved streets from “Parque dos Poderes” to PEP; (B) South American coatis using the arboreal strata to move from PEP to Parque das Nações Indígenas; (C) South American coatis searching for food in outdoor trash cans in VBA; (D) South American coatis foraging near the not fenced houses in VBA.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Diagnostic strategy for detection of Leishmania infantum in South American coatis (Nasua nasua) from forest fragments of Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Midwest Brazil.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Recapture events of South American coatis (Nasua nasua) from the conservation unit “Parque Estadual do Prosa” (PEP) and the residential area “Vila da Base Aérea” (VBA) from March 2018 to April 2019.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Parasitological and molecular detection of Leishmania infantum from the bone marrow samples of South American coatis (Nasua nasua) from urban forest fragments in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Midwest Brazil.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Longitudinal results of 19 South American coatis (Nasua nasua) infected by Leishmania infantum in urban forest fragments in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Midwest Brazil, from March 2018 to April 2019. ID: Identification number; PEP: conservation unit Parque Estadual do Prosa; VBA: residential rea Vila da Base Aérea. Positivity in molecular was obtained either by HSP70 sequencing or MC1/MC2 PCR. Seropositivity was considered when both ELISA and DPP® CVL tests were positive.
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Grants and funding

This research was supported by the Foundation for Support to the Development of Education, Science and Technology of the State of Mato Grosso do Sul (FUNDECT) (Process 59/300.187/2016), Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ) (Process E-26/202.994/2019 and E-26/010.002276/2019), the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) to HMH (Process 308768/2017-5), AMJ (PQ1-A) and ALRR (CNPq Process 425293/2018-1), and scholarship to FMS (process 88887.369261/2019-00), GCdeM (process 88887.149245/2017-00) and WTGB (process 150911/2021-1). The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.