Comparative Haematological Changes in Rats Experimentally Infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei and Treated with Imidocarb Dipropionate and Diminazene Aceturate

Abstract

Trypanosomosis is a disease that causes great haematological alterations in the infected. Despite the importance of the disease in animals, there is yet scarce trypanocides available for treatment of infected mammals. The present limitation in chemotherapy in trypanosomosis lead to assessment of the usefulness of imidocarb di propionate as an alternative trypanocide. Twenty one pathogen free albino rats were used in the study. They were randomly grouped into 3 of 7 members each. The GPA was uninfected control, GPB was infected with T. brucei brucei and treated with diminazene aceturate and GPC was infected with T. brucei brucei and treated with imidazole dipropionate. By 5 to 6 days post infection, there was a significant decrease in the PCV and Hb concentration values of the infected groups (GPB and GPC) and up to day 7 in GPC. There were haematological improvement in the infected groups by day 8 post infection (day 3 post treatment) on treatment with imidocarb dipropionate and diminazene in GPB and GPC, respectively. The rapid haematological improvements in the groups were attributed to prompt treatment and acuteness of the disease in the rats. It was concluded that T. brucei brucei alters both the PCV and Hb values of infected rats and treatment with imidocarb dipropionate significantly (p<0.05) improved altered haematological values and therefore could serve as an alternative trypanocide.