Mechanisms Involved in the Persistence of Babesia canis Infection in Dogs

Abstract

Dogs that are infected with Babesia canis parasites usually show severe clinical signs, yet often very few parasites are detectable in the blood circulation. The results showed that large numbers of B. canis-infected red blood cells accumulate in the microvasculature of infected subjects. The initial process leading to the attachment of infected erythrocytes to the endothelial cells of small capillaries (sequestration) appears to involve the interaction of parasite molecules at the erythrocyte surface with ligands on the endothelial cells. Since parasites continue to develop in the sequestered erythrocyte, it would be expected that the infected erythrocyte is destroyed when the mature parasites escape the host cell, which would make it hard to explain accumulation of infected erythrocytes at the initial site of attachment. Apparently, additional processes are triggered that lead to consolidation of parasite sequestration. One possible explanation is that after initial attachment of an infected erythrocyte to the wall of a blood capillary, the coagulation system is involved in the trapping of infected and uninfected erythrocytes. The data further suggest that newly formed parasites subsequently infect normal red blood cells that are also trapped in the capillary, which finally leads to capillaries that appear to be loaded with infected erythrocytes.