The information about the clinical features of Leishmania infantum infection in cats is scarce. In this study, we evaluated the serum protein electrophoresis of samples from 19 infected but apparently healthy cats. To detect L. infantum infection, two serological tests, i.e. western blot (WB) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as well as quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) on the blood samples were performed. Eventual infection by several selected bacterial and viral pathogens was also tested. All but one of the cats were found positive with WB. The WB-negative cat was positive by ELISA only. From the 18 WB-positive cats, only three were positive also by ELISA and eight with qPCR, including the only animal which was positive in all the three tests. No concomitant infections were detected in any of the cats. The main alteration of the proteinogram was characterised by an increase of the α-2 fraction. In the five cats with hypergammaglobulinaemia, the pattern detected was polyclonal. None of the cats were seropositive to any other pathogens tested. The presence of polyclonal gammopathy and elevation of the α-2 fraction could suggest the presence of active infection. In contrast, the only detection of an increase of the α-2 fraction alone with the presence of positive serological result could be associated by immune response activation against L. infantum.
Keywords: Leishmania infantum; PCR; agarose gel electrophoresis; cat; serology.