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Low infectiousness of a wildlife host of Leishmania infantum: the crab-eating fox is not important for transmission
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Courtenay, Orin, Quinnell, R. J., Garcez, L. M. and Dye, C. (2002) Low infectiousness of a wildlife host of Leishmania infantum: the crab-eating fox is not important for transmission. Parasitology , Vol.125 (No.5). pp. 407-414. doi:10.1017/S0031182002002238 ISSN 0031-1820.
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0031182002002238
Abstract
The epidemiological role of the crab-eating fox Cerdocyon thous in the transmission of Leishmania infantum is assessed in a longitudinal study in Amazon Brazil. A total of 37 wild-caught foxes were immunologically and clinically monitored, and 26 foxes exposed to laboratory colonies of the sandfly vector Lutzomyia longipalpis, over a 15-month period. In total 78% (29/37) of foxes were seropositive for anti-Leishmania IgG on at least 1 occasion, and 38% (8/37) had infections confirmed by PCR and/or by culture. Point prevalences were 74% (serology), 15% (PCR), and 26% (culture). No signs of progressive disease were observed. None of the foxes were infectious to the 1469 sandflies dissected from 44 feeds. A conservative estimate of the possible contribution of foxes to transmission was 9% compared to 91% by sympatric domestic dogs. These results show that crab-eating fox populations do not maintain a transmission cycle independently of domestic dogs. The implication is that they are unlikely to introduce the parasite into Leishmania-free dog populations.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
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Subjects: | Q Science > QL Zoology | ||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Life Sciences (2010- ) > Biological Sciences ( -2010) | ||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Leishmania, Dusicyon -- Diseases and pests, Kala-azar, Zoonoses, Dogs as carriers of disease | ||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Parasitology | ||||
Publisher: | Cambridge University Press | ||||
ISSN: | 0031-1820 | ||||
Official Date: | May 2002 | ||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | Vol.125 | ||||
Number: | No.5 | ||||
Page Range: | pp. 407-414 | ||||
DOI: | 10.1017/S0031182002002238 | ||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) |
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