TRANSMISSION OF VISCERAL LEISHMANIASIS BY BLOOD-TRANSFUSION IN HAMSTERS

We have studied the transmission of visceral leishmaniasis by blood tr ansfusion in the CB hamster model. Five normal CB hamsters (females, 2 .5 months old) received a 0.1-ml blood transfusion from a donor that h ad been infected with 10(7) amastigotes of Leishmania donovani 90 days prior to the blood harvest. The development of the disease in transfu sed animals was monitored by the increase in anti-Leishmania serum ant ibodies, splenomegaly, and spleen and liver parasitic burdens. The tra nsfused hamsters developed all the typical signs of the disease, i.e., ascites, cachexia and death. The scores of anti-leishmania antibodies (1.345) and the level of parasite load (spleen Leishman Donovan units of Stauber (LDU) = 471, liver LDU = 378) in transfused hamsters were similar to those observed in hamsters experimentally infected with 10( 7) amastigotes (P>0.05, Student t-test). Our results demonstrate that blood transfusion is an effective route for transmission of visceral l eishmaniasis, and we point out that adequate precautions should be tak en at blood banks in the regions where leishmaniasis is endemic.