Molecular Survey of Dirofilaria and Leishmania Species in Dogs from Central Balkan
Open accessAbstract
Dirofilariosis and leishmaniosis are severe parasitic diseases in dogs, and their causative agents can also be pathogenic to humans. In this study, we conducted a multicentric survey in the regions of Serbia and North Macedonia with the goal to establish an epidemiological scenario of dirofilariosis and leishmaniosis in the territory of Central Balkan. Using molecular analyses, a total of 535 dogs from Northern Serbia (NS), Southern Serbia (SS) and North Macedonia (NM) were screened for the presence of Dirofilaria spp. and Leishmania spp. We confirmed that Central Balkan is an endemic region for Dirofilaria (D.) immitis, as it was found to be the dominant species in this area, with the highest prevalence of 8.75% in NM, followed by NS (6.68%) and a significantly lower prevalence in SS (1.51%). Two dogs (2.5%) from NM were positive for Leishmania (L.) infantum infection. None of the dogs from Serbia tested positive for Leishmania spp. High prevalence and dominance of D. immitis species, and the rising threat of L. infantum spread to the territory of Serbia, suggest that preventive measures are of a great necessity to combat the spread of these vector-borne zoonoses.
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In the Republic of Kosovo, D. immitis antigens were detected in 14.8% of dogs tested, the first evidence of infected dogs in this country.
“In the Republic of Kosovo, antigens of D. immitis were detected in 14.8% of the dogs tested [72], being the first evidence of infected dogs in this country.”
From What has happened to heartworm disease in Europe in the last 10 years? (2022) · cites this paper as [72]
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- Authors
- Tasić-Otašević, S., Savić, S., Jurhar-Pavlova, M., Stefanovska, J., Stalević, M., Ignjatović, A., Ranđelović, M., Gajić, B., Cvetkovikj, A., & Gabrielli, S.
- Affiliations
- Medical Faculty, University of Niš, 18000 Niš, Serbia
- Scientific Veterinary Institute "Novi Sad" (RS)
- Institute for Microbiology and Parasitology, Medical Faculty, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, 1000 Skopje, North Macedonia
- Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje (MK)
- University of Nis (RS)
- United Arab Emirates University (AE)
- Sapienza University of Rome (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Gabrielli, Simona
- ORCID
- Venue
- Animals
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2022-04-02
- Volume
- 12
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 911
- ISSN
- 2076-2615 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8997140
- OpenAlex
- W4223608712
- Cited by
- 13
- References
- 36
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 2
- FWCI
- 1.47
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Animals (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- IRIS Research product catalog (Sapienza University of Rome) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Serbian Ministry of Education and Science (175034)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › Parasitic Diseases Research and Treatment
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Research on Leishmaniasis Studies
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Helminth infection and control
- Keywords
- canine dirofilariasis, canine leishmaniasis, Dirofilaria immitis, Leishmania infantum, dogs, prevalence, zoonoses, vector-borne diseases, Central Balkans, Serbia, North Macedonia, molecular detection
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