Trypanosoma (Herpetosoma) lewisi in Rattus spp from La Matica, Lara State, Venezuela and the possible relationship with zoonotic diseases

During a study carried out searching reservoir vertebrates for Leishmania spp in the area of La Matica, Lara State, Venezuela from March 1997 to October 1998, 40 specimens of Rattus spp were captured. Blood was extracted from all of them by means of cardiac puncture. Fresh blood and blood smears stained with Giemsa were examined. Of the 40 specimens studied, 22 (55 por ciento) resulted positive for the presence of Trypanosoma lewisi in blood. 63.15 por ciento of the infected animals were males 12-19, and 47.62 por ciento 10-21 females. By age, adult animals were infected in 62.96 por ciento of the cases 17-27 while young specimens were infected in 38.46 por ciento 5-13. The differences were not statistically significant. Regarding the period of capture almost all the individuals were captured during the raining season; a positive correlation between the average of the monthly rain and the number of individual captured was observed. Finally, we suggest the possible increase of the susceptibility of Rattus spp infected with T. lewisi to the infection by other species of the family Trypanosomatidae of public health importance (AU)

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