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Horses naturally infected by Trypanosoma vivax in southern Brazil

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Abstract

In this study, we reported the first outbreak of the infection by Trypanosoma vivax in horses in southern Brazil, a non-endemic region where bovines have only recently been found infected by this trypanosome species. We evaluated 12 horses from a farm in southern Brazil, where four horses displayed pale mucous membranes, fever, weight loss, and swelling of abdomen, prepuce, or vulva. The diagnosis of T. vivax was confirmed in four horses by morphological parameters of trypomastigotes in blood smears and species-specific PCR. All T. vivax-infected animals showed anemia, and most showed increased levels of beta-1, beta-2, and gamma globulins. Horses were treated with diminazene aceturate, but cure was not achieved, and the disease relapsed after therapy. These findings demonstrated that Brazilian T. vivax isolates, which were already reported infecting cattle, buffaloes, goats, and sheep, can be highly pathogenic for horses, causing severe disease and even death of the animals due to the recurrence of the infection.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Faixa de Camobi-Km 9, Campus Universitário, Prédio 20, Sala 4232, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil, 97105-900

    Aleksandro S. Da Silva, Régis A. Zanette & Silvia G. Monteiro

  2. Department of Parasitology, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

    Herakles A. Garcia Perez & Marta M. G. Teixeira

  3. Department of Small Animals, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Santa Maria, Brazil

    Aleksandro S. Da Silva, Márcio M. Costa, Raqueli T. França & Sonia T. A. Lopes

  4. Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Diego De Gasperi & João A. Amado

Authors
  1. Aleksandro S. Da Silva
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  2. Herakles A. Garcia Perez
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  3. Márcio M. Costa
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  4. Raqueli T. França
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  5. Diego De Gasperi
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  6. Régis A. Zanette
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  7. João A. Amado
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  8. Sonia T. A. Lopes
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  9. Marta M. G. Teixeira
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  10. Silvia G. Monteiro
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Correspondence to Aleksandro S. Da Silva.

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Da Silva, A.S., Garcia Perez, H.A., Costa, M.M. et al. Horses naturally infected by Trypanosoma vivax in southern Brazil. Parasitol Res 108, 23–30 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-010-2036-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-010-2036-2

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