ABSTRACT
Abstract Cats are less susceptible to Dirofilaria immitis infection than dogs. Although rare, the feline disease can be fatal even with low parasitic loads. The infection is often asymptomatic or has non-specific symptoms that are mainly associated with the death of immature worms. Microfilaremia is rare and transient. Normally, microfilaremia, when present, lasts for not more than 33 days. This study describes a feline case presenting with non-specific clinical signs and prolonged microfilaremia. Case: a random bred cat infected by feline leukemia virus (FeLV) that was found to be microfilaremic by chance. The infection was detected by the presence of microfilariae in a blood smear and was confirmed by antigen test (SNAP Feline Triple Test, Idexx®) and echocardiogram.
Resumo Gatos são menos susceptíveis à infecção por Dirofilaria immitis do que cães. Apesar de rara, a doença nos gatos pode ser fatal mesmo com baixas cargas parasitárias. Muitas vezes, a doença é assintomática ou apresenta sintomas inespecíficos, principalmente associados com a morte de formas parasitárias imaturas. Microfilaremia é rara e transitória. Normalmente, quando ocorre microfilaremia, ela permanece por, no máximo, 33 dias. Este estudo descreve o caso de um felino que apresentava sinais inespecíficos e microfilaremia prolongada: um gato sem raça definida, portador de infecção pelo vírus da leucemia felina (FeLV) que foi diagnosticado como microfilaremico ao acaso. A infecção foi detectada pela presença de microfilárias em esfregaço sanguíneo e, posteriormente, confirmada pelo teste de antígenos (SNAP Feline Triple Test, Idexx®) e por ecocardiograma.
Subject(s)
Animals , Cats , Cat Diseases/parasitology , Cat Diseases/virology , Dirofilaria immitis , Dirofilariasis/complications , Dirofilariasis/diagnosis , Dirofilariasis/blood , Leukemia Virus, Feline , Retroviridae Infections/complications , Retroviridae Infections/veterinary , Dirofilariasis/parasitologyABSTRACT
ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to perform the molecular characterization of conserved and variable regions of feline calicivirus capsid genome in order to investigate the molecular diversity of variants in Brazilian cat population. Twenty-six conjunctival samples from cats living in five public short-term animal shelters and three multicat life-long households were analyzed. Fifteen cats had conjunctivitis, three had oral ulceration, eight had respiratory signs (cough, sneeze and nasal discharge) and nine were asymptomatic. Feline calicivirus were isolated in CRFK cells and characterized by reverse transcription PCR target to both conserved and variable regions of open reading frame 2. The amplicons obtained were sequenced. A phylogenetic analysis along with most of the prototypes available in GenBank database and an amino acid analysis were performed. Phylogenetic analysis based on both conserved and variable region revealed two clusters with an aLTR value of 1.00 and 0.98 respectively and the variants from this study belong to feline calicivirus genogroup I. No association between geographical distribution and/or clinical signs and clustering in phylogenetic tree was observed. The variants circulating in public short-term animal shelter demonstrated a high variability because of the relatively rapid turnover of carrier cats constantly introduced of multiple viruses into this location over time.
Subject(s)
Animals , Cats , Cat Diseases/virology , Calicivirus, Feline/isolation & purification , Calicivirus, Feline/genetics , Caliciviridae Infections/veterinary , Pets/virology , Phylogeny , Brazil , Open Reading Frames , Genome, Viral , Calicivirus, Feline/classification , Caliciviridae Infections/virology , Capsid Proteins/geneticsABSTRACT
Para avaliar a freqüência da infecção pelo vírus da leucemia felina (VLF), 298 gatos doentes, atendidos no Hospital Veterinário da Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia da Universidade de São Paulo, foram submetidos ao teste imunoenzimático para a detecção de antígenos virais do VLF (Leukassay F., Pitman Moore Inc.). Dos animais submetidos ao teste, 37 (12,5%) apresentaram-se positivos, com diagnóstico clínico de hemobartonelose (10), linfoma mediastinal (7), icterícia e febre (3), peritonite infecciosa felina (2), anemia hipoplásica (2), uveíte (2), gastroenterite (2), trombocitopenia (2), periodontite (2) atrofia do timo (1), doença respiratória crônica (1) e contactante e assintomático (1). A maioria dos animais acometidos situava-se na faixa etária de 30 a 36 meses, tendo o mais jovem um mês e o mais velho 12 anos de idade. A infecção foi observada com maior freqüência entre os machos, que responderam por 67,5% dos casos, havendo também predominância dos felinos sem raça definida.
Serum samples from 298 sick cats were submitted to enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for detecting feline leukemia virus (Felv) antigen (Leukassay F., Pitman Moore), aiming to evaluate the frequence of Felv infection among domestic cats. Thirty seven Felv (12.5%) positiva cats were found. The reagents were observed among cats with clinical diagnosis of hemobartonellosis (10), mediastinal lymphoma (7), jaundice and fever (3), feline infectious peritonitis (2), hypoplastic anemia (2), uveitides (2), gastroenteritidis (2), trombocytopenia (1), periodontitides (2), atrophy of thymus (1), chronic respiratory disease (1), carcinoma (1), and asymptomatic (1). The great majority of cats were 30 to 36 months old, being the youngest one month old and the oldest one, twelve years. Felv infection was more frequent among male cats (67.5%) and in short haired domestic cats.