Efficiency of the fluorescent antibody and indirect hemagglutination (IHR) tests for the diagnosis of the canine visceral leishmaniasis

Dogs are the main reservoir of Leishmania donovani however, better standardization of serological tests for the diagnosis of canine Calaazar still has to be done. Thus, in this paper the fluorescent antibody (FA) and indirect hemagglutination (IHA) tests for this diagnostic purpose were standardized and evaluated in 42 sera from animals with clinical and parasitological diagnosis of Calaazar and 60 sera from healthy dogs. The stipulated cut-offs for FR and IHA tests were, respectively, 20 and 40. The indices of sensibility, specificity, efficiency, positive and negative predictive values for FA tests were as follow: 0.952, 1.000, 0.983, 1.000 and 0.968 and, for the IHA test: 0.857, 1.000, 0.941, 1.000 and 0.909. It was concluded that both FA and IHA tests are efficient for the diagnosis of canine leishmaniasis.A sorologia da leishmaniose visceral em cães não teve, ainda, um estudo de padronização, embora esta espécie animal constitua importante reservatório de Leishmania donovani. Este trabalho teve como objetivo verificar a eficiência das reações de. imunofluorescência indireta (RIFI) e de hemaglutinação passiva (RHP) para o diagnóstico do calazar canino. Assim, 42 soros de cães com calazar comprovado clinica e parasitologicamente e 60 soros de cães clinicamente sadios foram testados. Analisou-se a distribuição de títulos e a eficiência dos testes para os diferentes níveis de limiar de reatividade. Para a eficiência máxima dos testes, o limiar de reatividade foi de 20 e 40 respectivamente para RIFI e RHP. Desta forma, a sensibilidade, a especificidade, a concordância ou a eficiência diagnóstica, o valor preditivo positivo e o valor preditivo negativo foram de 0,952, 1,000, 0,983, 1,000 e 0,968 para RIFI e 0,857, 1,000, 0,941, 1,000 e 0,909 para RHP. Concluiu-se que tanto a RIFI quanto a RHP são eficientes para estabelecer o diagnóstico sorológico da leishmaniose canina

Abiotic factors and population dynamic of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus in an endemic area of dengue in Brazil

Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus are exotic species in the Americas with high epidemiological relevance as they are vectors of many pathogens. This study aimed at understanding the population dynamics of A. aegypti and A. albopictus and the influence of abiotic factors in an endemic area of dengue. The study was conducted in the urban area of Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, over one year. In seven regions of the city, 50 ovitraps were installed in each neighborhood. The development of the larvae was monitored under controlled laboratory conditions until they reached the adult phase. A total of 50,900 eggs of Aedes sp. were collected, 26,073 of which reached adulthood: 25,496 (97.8 %) A. aegypti and 540 (2.1%) A. albopictus. A. aegypti was observed in all months during the study. The highest number of A. albopictus eggs were collected in June, while in August and September, an absence of this species was noted. Abiotic factors such as temperature, humidity and rainfall were responsible for the observed fluctuations in the mosquito population. The presence of A. albopictus in the urban area of the city is concerning because it could become a potential vector for other arboviruses that afflict human populations. The occurrence of these species in Campo Grande reinforces the need for constant entomological and epidemiological surveillance so that informed actions could be taken to decrease potential breeding sites

Sandfly fauna (Diptera: Psychodidae) in an urban area, Central-West of Brazil

Biological and ecological relations among vectors and their pathogens are important to understand the epidemiology of vector-borne diseases. Camapuã is an endemic area for visceral and tegumentary leishmaniasis. The aim of this study was to characterize the sandfly fauna present in Camapuã , MS, Brazil. Sand flies were collected every fortnight from May 2014 to April 2015 using automatic light traps in the domicile and peridomicile of twelve neighborhoods and forest. The collected specimens were identified based on morphology according to the valid identification keys. In total, 2005 sandflies of five genera and nine species were collected. Nyssomyia whitmani and Lutzomyia cruzi were the most abundant species. Males were more abundant, with a male-to-female ratio of 2.14. The highest diversity was observed in peripheral neighborhood, with abundant plant cover. The peridomicile presented greater abundance of sandflies, with the predominance of Ny. whitmani . No significant correlation between the absolute frequencies of the most abundant species and the precipitation variable was observed; however, there was a predominance of Lu. cruzi in the rainy season. We observed a high frequency of sandflies in urban area, especially vector species. The presence of Nyssomyia whitmani and Lutzomyia cruzi indicate the necessity for health surveillance in the municipality. Additional method of collection such as sticky trap is also recommended for appropriate faunestic study

Phlebotomine fauna (Diptera: Psychodidae) of an American cutaneous leishmaniasis endemic area in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

The occurrence of an outbreak of cutaneous leishmaniasis associated with Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis in the municipality of Bela Vista, state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, and the absence of information on its vectors in this area led the authors to undertake captures of phlebotomine sand flies, using Shannon traps and automatic CDC light traps, in domiciles, forested areas and animal shelters from February 2004-January 2006. A total of 808 specimens belonging to 18 sandfly species have been identified: Bichromomyia flaviscutellata,Brumptomyia avellari, Brumptomyia brumpti, Brumptomyia sp, Evandromyia aldafalcaoae, Evandromyia cortelezzii, Evandromyia evandroi, Evandromyia lenti, Evandromyia teratodes, Evandromyia termitophila, Lutzomyia longipalpis, Nyssomyia whitmani, Pintomyia christenseni, Psathyromyia aragaoi, Psathyromyia campograndensis, Psathyromyia punctigeniculata, Psathyromyia shannoni and Sciopemyia sordellii. The presence of Lu. longipalpis, Ny. whitmani and Bi. flaviscutellata, vectors of Leishmania chagasi, Leishmania braziliensis and L. amazonensis, respectively, has increased.FUNDECT - DECIT Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia do Ministério da Saúd