Abstract

ALEGRE, Elsa et al. Detection of Leishmania (viannia) braziliensis in the ear skin of Rattus rattus that inhabit the city of Corrientes. Rev. Inst. Med. Trop. [online]. 2021, vol.16, n.2, pp.13-21. ISSN 1996-3696.  https://doi.org/10.18004/imt/2021.16.2.13.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is a zoonotic disease that is transmitted to man and animals through the bite of dipteran insects of the genera Phlebotomus and Lutzomyia infected with different species of protozoa of the genus Leishmania. In Latin America the main etiological agent responsible for this parasitosis is the species L. braziliensis. Although numerous species of mammals have been identified naturally infected with Leishmania species, rodents would play an important role in the transmission cycle of the disease. The present work aimed to identify the species of leishmania that circulates in synanthropic rodents that inhabit the urban area of the city of Corrientes. We worked with rodent ear skin samples to which the Nested PCR techniques were applied for the identification of Leishmania spp and Simple PCR for the detection of L. braziliensis. A total of 30 rodent samples of the species Rattus rattus were analyzed, of which 2 samples were detectable by Nested PCR. Next, the samples detectable to Leishmania spp. Simple PCR was applied to L. braziliensis, both of which were detectable in this species. Although the values obtained in this work are not high to be considered as reservoirs, there is evidence of a natural infection that does not clinically affect the rodents studied with circulation of the parasite on the skin, particularly of the L. braziliensis species.

Keywords : Leishmania braziliensis; synanthropic rodents; molecular biology.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )