Department of Animal Sciences, Federal Rural University of the Semiarid (UFERSA), Av. Francisco Mota, Br 110, Km 47-59, 59625-900 Mossoró, RN, Brazil.
Vet Parasitol. 2013 Jan 16;191(1-2):146-53. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2012.08.001. Epub 2012 Aug 13.
Infection by Trypanosoma vivax and other African trypanosomes plays an important role in reproductive disorders in male and female livestock. Outbreaks of T. vivax in the semi-arid region of northeastern Brazil are characterized by wasting disease in cattle, sheep and goats with hematological, cardiac and nervous compromises in addition to reproductive failures. Similar to reports from Africa, we previously observed a reduction in fertility rates and severe testicular degeneration and epididymitis in male sheep infected with T. vivax from this region. Although anestrus is frequently reported in goats and sheep infected with T. vivax, the effects of this infection on the female reproductive organs need clarification. In this study, we addressed this issue through a histopathological evaluation of ovarian follicular morphology and classification in goats experimentally infected with a T. vivax isolate from the Brazilian semi-arid region. The infected animals presented typical clinical signs of trypanosomosis by T. vivax, including anemia, hyperthermia, pallor of the mucous membranes, enlarged lymph nodes, and progressive loss of weight. All the infected goats remained anestrus throughout the experimental period and exhibited important disturbances in the ovaries, evidenced by reduced size and a smooth surface without follicles or corpora lutea, and abnormal follicular development. In addition, through PCR, we detected T. vivax DNA in the ovarian tissues of the infected goats. Our findings contributed to understand the female reproductive failure associated with trypanosomosis caused by T. vivax.
布氏锥虫和其他非洲锥虫的感染在雄性和雌性牲畜的生殖障碍中起着重要作用。在巴西东北部半干旱地区，锥虫病的爆发以牛、羊和山羊的消瘦病为特征，伴有血液学、心脏和神经系统损伤，以及生殖失败。与非洲的报告类似，我们之前观察到，来自该地区的布氏锥虫感染的雄性绵羊的生育率降低，睾丸严重退化和附睾炎。尽管布氏锥虫感染的山羊和绵羊经常出现安静发情，但这种感染对雌性生殖器官的影响仍需阐明。在这项研究中，我们通过对来自巴西半干旱地区的布氏锥虫分离株感染的山羊的卵巢卵泡形态和分类进行组织病理学评估来解决这个问题。受感染的动物表现出典型的锥虫病临床症状，包括贫血、发热、黏膜苍白、淋巴结肿大和体重逐渐减轻。所有受感染的山羊在整个实验期间均处于安静发情状态，并且卵巢出现重要紊乱，表现为体积减小、表面光滑无卵泡或黄体，以及卵泡发育异常。此外，通过 PCR，我们在受感染山羊的卵巢组织中检测到了布氏锥虫 DNA。我们的研究结果有助于了解与布氏锥虫引起的锥虫病相关的雌性生殖失败。
