Zoonotic parasites infecting free-living armadillos from Brazil.
Abstract
Abstract: Armadillos are specialist diggers and their burrows are used
to find food, seek shelter and protect their pups. These burrows can
also be shared with dozens of vertebrate and invertebrate species and;
consequently, their parasites including the zoonotics. The aim of this
study was to diagnose the presence of zoonotic parasites in four
wild-caught armadillo species from two different Brazilian ecosystems,
the Cerrado (Brazilian savanna) and the Pantanal (wetland). The
investigated parasites and their correspondent diseases were: Toxoplasma
gondii (toxoplasmosis), Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas disease), Leishmania
spp., (leishmaniasis), Paracoccidioides spp. (Paracoccidioidomicosis)
and Mycobacterium leprae (Hansen’s disease). Forty-three free-living
armadillos from Pantanal and seven road-killed armadillos from the
Cerrado were sampled. Trypanosoma cruzi DTU TcIII were isolated from 2
out of 43 (4.65%) armadillos, including one of them also infected with
Trypanosoma rangeli. Antibodies anti-T. gondii were detected in 13 out
of 43 (30.2%) armadillos. All seven armadillos from Cerrado tested
positive for Paracoccidioides brasiliensis DNA, in the lungs, spleen,
liver and ear fragments. Also, by molecular analysis, all 43 individuals
were negative for M. leprae and Leishmania spp. Armadillos were infected
by T. cruzi, T. rangeli, P. brasiliensis, and presented seric antibodies
to T. gondii, highlighting the importance of those armadillos could have
in the epidemiology of zoonotic parasites. Key words: Cingulata,
Trypanosoma cruzi, Toxoplasma gondii, Paracoccidioides brasiliensis,
Mycobacterium leprae, Leishmania sp.