Metabolismo do ferro em cães com leishmaniose visceral tratados com miltefosina e alopurinol

Abstract

In Brazil, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is caused by Leishmania infantum. Dogs are the primary reservoir for this parasite. Anemia is one of the main clinical signs of VL. The objective of this study was to evaluate erythrogram parameters, serum concentration of iron, transferrin, and total iron-binding capacity (TIBIC) and to investigate their association with parasitic load in 45 dogs naturally infected with L. infantum and treated with miltefosine (G1), miltefosine plus allopurinol (G2), and allopurinol (G3). Before the start of treatment, all groups had mean values for erythrogram parameters; serum iron, transferrin, and TIBIC below the normal reference levels. These remained so after treatment. However, dogs from groups G2 and G3 showed a statistically significant increase in the erythrogram values after treatment (p < 0.05). Moreover, serum iron values increased in all groups, with a significant increase in group G1 (p < 0.01). Interestingly, transferrin and TIBIC levels decreased in G1 but increased in G2 and G3. The treatments did not significantly reduce the parasitic load but promoted improvement in hematimetric and ferric parameters. Allopurinol as monotherapy or in combination with miltefosine showed best results, while miltefosine resulted in only a slight improvement.