EVALUATION OF ANTI-LEISHMANIA ANTIBODIES IN DOGS NATURALLY DIAGNOSED WITH VISCERAL LEISHMANIASIS SUBMITTED TO THERAPEUTIC PLASMA EXCHANGE (TPE)

• Grant number: 25/10588-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2025
• End date: August 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Clinics and Surgery
• Principal Investigator: Priscylla Tatiana Chalfun Guimaraes-Okamoto
• Grantee: Vitória Oliveira Wahler
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) is an emerging apheresis modality in veterinary research, with potential applications in the management of diseases characterized by excessive antibody production and immune complexes that are harmful to the organism. Among these diseases, canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) stands out as a zoonosis of increasing incidence, whose diagnosis is challenging due to the nonspecific clinical signs and the various systemic immunological effects it induces. Understanding the impact of TPE on the production of specific antibodies against CVL could enable its use as an adjunctive therapy for this condition. Thus, this study aims to evaluate the effects of centrifugation-based TPE on the production and concentration of antileishmania antibodies in dogs naturally diagnosed with CVL. For this purpose, 26 dogs were selected and divided into two groups: a clinical treatment group (n = 13) and a clinical treatment + TPE group (n = 13). The animals in the second group underwent three consecutive sessions of TPE (D1, D2, and D3), with blood samples collected before and after each procedure. Additionally, plasma samples removed during TPE were collected. The immunological evaluation will include the quantification of immunoglobulins antileishmania in both serum and the plasma removed during TPE. The central hypothesis of the study is that TPE may reduce the serum concentration of immunoglobulins associated with the progressive form of CVL, contributing to the improvement of the animals' immune and clinical responses. Therefore, TPE could become a promising therapeutic option for the management of canine visceral leishmaniasis.