CLINICAL, HISTOPATHOLOGICAL AND ENZYMATIC CHANGES IN SHEEP EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED WITH Trypanosoma vivax

Abstract

This present research evaluated the clinical signs, histopathological and enzymatic changes in sheep experimentally infected with T. vivax. For this evaluation, eight male sheep, four in the control group and four infected with 105 T. vivax trypomastigotes were used. Blood samples were collected twice before infection and on certain days after infection, evaluating the serum levels of gamma-glutamyltransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase, alkaline phosphatase and creatine kinase. The animals were examined daily for parasitaemia, and 120 days after infection (dpi) the animals were euthanized and necropsied with posterior liver, kidney, spleen, heart, lymph nodes, brain, lung and testicles histopathology. Wilcoxon test at 5% probability was used for the statistical analysis. The following clinical signs were found: apathy, pallor of mucous membranes, increase of superficial lymph nodes, nasal discharge and elevated rectal temperature, occasional diarrhea and nervous signs (bruxism and incoordination). Significant changes in all biochemical parameters and histopathological parameters were found in infected animals, thus the T. vivax sample found in Paraíba, Brazil, can cause changes on enzyme levels besides clinical and important histological changes, compromising the functionality of the affected organs and resulting in metabolic dysfunction.

KEYWORDS: Biochemical, clinical signs, enzymes, histopathology, small ruminant, Trypanosomatidae.