INFLAMMATION IN DOGS WITH BRAIN Visceral Leishmaniasis : Molecular Research of the Adaptive Immune Response

Abstract

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a canine disease with variable clinical manifestation and complex pathogenesis.Dogs may have subclinical to widespread alterations and severe systemic disorders. Because of brain inflammatory changes, it is now known that chronically infected dogs may have significant neurological deficits. Despite the clinical importance of this disorder, there are few reports that characterize neurological injuries in LV. Recent studies showed the presence of brain inflammation by lymphocyte infiltration of observation T, glial cell activation, degenerative changes of neurons, meningitis, choroiditis, and the presence of enzymes such as matrix metalloproteinases. Continuing the previous projects, this study seek to evaluate, through the gene expression, the complex profile subsets of CD4 + effector cells, and their activation related to the adaptive response in brains of dogs with LV. Added to this, the comparison of this profile will be held the expression of the same markers in the spleen, and the correlation between the profile and histopathology of brain lesions, thus seeking to contribute to better understanding of the mechanisms involved in the pathological findings in the brain of these animals.