Leishmania hide-and-seek: Parasite amastigotes in the choroid plexus of a dog with neurological signs in an endemic municipality in Brazil

Fernanda Grecco Grano (1) , José Eduardo dos Santos Silva (1) , Guilherme Dias De Melo (2) , Gisele Fabrino Machado (1)

1 UNESP - Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho = São Paulo State University
2 Processus infectieux à Trypanosomatidés - Trypanosomatids Infectious Processes

A female adult mixed-breed stray dog presented with hind limb paraparesis and clinical signs of visceral leishmaniasis. The cerebrospinal fluid presented signs of blood-brain barrier disruption. Both spleen and brain were positive for Leishmania spp. DNA. Besides inflammation, in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry (IHC) revealed the presence of intracellular amastigotes in the choroid plexus (CP). Despite other studies that revealed parasite DNA, the current study describes the presence of Leishmania within the brain of a naturally infected dog, specifically in CP, with no previous reports in the Americas, and suggests the CP as a possible pathway to parasite entry into the brain.

Mots clés: Brain; Inflammation; Leishmaniasis; visceral; Protozoan infections

Domaines: Parasitologie

Fernanda Grecco Grano, José Eduardo dos Santos Silva, Guilherme Dias De Melo, Gisele Fabrino Machado. Leishmania hide-and-seek: Parasite amastigotes in the choroid plexus of a dog with neurological signs in an endemic municipality in Brazil. Veterinary Parasitology : Regional Studies and Reports, 2019, 17, pp.100291. ⟨10.1016/j.vprsr.2019.100291⟩. ⟨hal-03504206⟩