Plasmodium infection and its association with biochemical and haematological parameters in free-living Alouatta guariba clamitans (Cabrera, 1940) (Primates: Atelidae) in Southern Brazil
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
;
114: e190210, 2019. tab, graf
Article
in English
| LILACS
| ID: biblio-1101271
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND The influence of Plasmodium spp. infection in the health of Southern brown howler monkey, Alouatta guariba clamitans, the main reservoir of malaria in the Atlantic Forest, is still unknown. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to investigate the positivity rate of Plasmodium infection in free-living howler monkeys in an Atlantic Forest fragment in Joinville/SC and to associate the infection with clinical, morphometrical, haematological and biochemical alterations. METHODS Molecular diagnosis of Plasmodium infection in the captured monkeys was performed by Nested-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (18S rRNA and coxI). Haematological and biochemical parameters were compared among infected and uninfected monkeys; clinical and morphometrical parameters were also compared. FINDINGS The positivity rate of Plasmodium infection was 70% among forty captured animals, the highest reported for neotropical primates. None statistical differences were detected in the clinical parameters, and morphometric measures comparing infected and uninfected groups. The main significant alteration was the higher alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels in infected compared to uninfected monkeys. MAIN CONCLUSIONS Therefore, Plasmodium infection in howler monkeys may causes haematological/biochemical alterations which might suggest hepatic impairment. Moreover, infection must be monitored for the eco-epidemiological surveillance of malaria in the Atlantic Forest and during primate conservation program that involves the animal movement, such as translocations.
Full text:
Available
Index:
LILACS (Americas)
Main subject:
Disease Reservoirs
/
Alouatta
/
Malaria
/
Monkey Diseases
Type of study:
Risk factors
Limits:
Animals
Country/Region as subject:
South America
/
Brazil
Language:
English
Journal:
Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz
Journal subject:
Tropical Medicine
/
Parasitology
Year:
2019
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Brazil
Institution/Affiliation country:
Fundação Oswaldo Cruz-Fiocruz/BR
/
Universidade Regional de Blumenau/BR
/
Universidade da Região de Joinville/BR
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