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Evaluation of parasitological and immunological aspects of acute infection by Ancylostoma caninum and Ancylostoma braziliense in mixed-breed dogs

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Abstract

This study compared the course of infection by Ancylostoma caninum and Ancylostoma braziliense in mixed-breed dogs infected with L3 larvae. Dogs infected with A. caninum eliminated more eggs than did those infected with A. braziliense. A total of 38 % of A. caninum and 44 % of A. braziliense larvae were recovered as adult worms. There were no marked clinical abnormalities in dogs with either infection. A. caninum was associated with anemia and an increased number of circulating neutrophils, whereas infection with A. braziliense led to a decrease in the number of leukocytes. The humoral response against excreted and secreted antigens from adult worms was more sensitive and specific than the response induced with the crude antigen. No immune response was observed for either crude or excreted-secreted (ES) antigens from larvae of either species. A nonspecific response against the crude antigen of A. braziliense was found at 0 and 7 days postinfection and maintained throughout the infection period. However, antibody titers against ES antigens were elevated in A. caninum infection at patency and death, showing that this antigen has a higher specificity. The immune response elicited by infection with A. braziliense in dogs has not been described previously. No significant differences were observed in the infection processes of the two Ancylostoma species, except for the higher number of eggs eliminated from dogs infected with A. caninum, which may indicate a better evolutionary adaptation of the parasite to its host in comparison with A. braziliense.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by FAPEMIG (project number: CBB-APQ-00773-08), CNPq, and CAPES. We thank Dr. Walter S. Lima, Laboratory of Veterinary Helminthology, Department of Parasitology, ICB/UFMG, for the donation of A. caninum larvae.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Avenida Presidente Antônio Carlos 6627, Campus Pampulha, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil

    Sílvia Regina Costa Dias, Denílson Eduardo Silva Cunha, Hudson Andrade dos Santos, Ricardo Toshio Fujiwara & Élida Mara Leite Rabelo

  2. Laboratório de Genética Bioquímica, Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia, ICB, UFMG, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil

    Sílvia Regina Costa Dias

  3. Departamento de Imunologia, Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Avenida Amazonas s/n, Campus Umuarama, 38400-902, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Sydnei Magno da Silva

  4. Laboratório de Imunologia Celular e Molecular, Instituto René Rachou, FIOCRUZ, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil

    Ricardo Toshio Fujiwara

  5. Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Doenças Tropicais (INCT-DT), Salvador, Bahia, Brasil

    Ricardo Toshio Fujiwara

Authors
  1. Sílvia Regina Costa Dias
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  2. Denílson Eduardo Silva Cunha
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  3. Sydnei Magno da Silva
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  4. Hudson Andrade dos Santos
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  5. Ricardo Toshio Fujiwara
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  6. Élida Mara Leite Rabelo
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Correspondence to Sílvia Regina Costa Dias.

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Dias, S.R.C., Cunha, D.E.S., da Silva, S.M. et al. Evaluation of parasitological and immunological aspects of acute infection by Ancylostoma caninum and Ancylostoma braziliense in mixed-breed dogs. Parasitol Res 112, 2151–2157 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-013-3370-y

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