Effective immunotherapy against canine visceral leishmaniasis with the FML-vaccine

The potential effect of the fucose mannose ligand (FML)-vaccine on immunotherapy of canine visceral leishmaniasis was assayed on five mongrel dogs experimentally infected with Leishmania donovani and on 21 Leishmania chagasi naturally infected dogs when seropositive to FML but completely asymptomatic. The clinical signs of the experimentally infected, symptomatic dogs only disappeared after the complete vaccination. Protection was obtained in 3/5 animals that remained asymptomatic, IDR positive and parasite free, 1 year after infection. Furthermore, the asymptomatic, FML-vaccine treated dogs showed stable anti-FML IgG1 levels, increasing IgG2 levels and 79–95% of positive DTH response, during the whole experiment. Twenty-two months after complete vaccination, no obits due to visceral leishmaniasis were recorded and 90% of these dogs were still asymptomatic, healthy and parasite free. On the other hand, 37% (17/46 dogs) kala-azar obits were recorded in a control group that received no treatment during the same period, and that was FML-seropositive and asymtpomatic at the beginning of the assay. Our results indicate that the FML-vaccine was effective in the immunotherapy against visceral leishmaniasis of asymptomatic infected dogs. Normal proportions of CD4 and CD21 lymphocytes were detected in PBMC by FACS analysis, in dogs submitted to immunotherapy, suggesting their non-infectious condition. All animals showed as well significantly increased percents of CD8 lymphocytes as expected for Quillaja saponin (QuilA) vaccine treatments.