A canine model of experimental infection with Leishmania (L.) mexicana

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis is a tropical disease affecting over one million patients annually and Leishmania (L.) mexicana is one of the major etiological agents in the Americas. Here we established the first experimental infection of L. (L.) mexicana in canids. Methods: Beagle dogs were infected intradermally with culture-derived L. (L.) mexicana. We followed skin ulcer development, histopathological signs, parasite burden and the immune status of the infected dogs. Results: All infected dogs developed uniform oval-craterform ulcers similar to those observed in humans, associated with mixed T helper 1/T helper 2 immune responses. Parasites were detected in the healed lesions 15 weeks post-infection. Higher anti-Leishmania IgG levels correlated with larger lesions and high IgG1/IgG2 ratio was associated with some level of splenomegaly. Conclusions: The canine model described in this work will be of use for further understanding of L. (L.) mexicana immunopathogenensis, and for drug and vaccine development.