Fig. 4.

Combined treatment with allopurinol and F2 + SLA-SE is required for sustained parasite clearance from lymphoid and non-lymphoid organs of L. infantum-infected dogs. Dogs were either not treated (n = 6) or were treated with allopurinol alone (n = 8) or allopurinol plus Leish-F2 + SLA-SE (n = 8). Samples were collected at termination of the observation period and L. infantum burden determined by real time PCR. Parasite burdens were determined in samples from (A) kidney, (B) skin, (C) liver, (D) lymph nodes and (E) spleen. Each point shows the parasite number detected for an individual animal, with the Box and Whisker overlay representing the median, the lower and upper quartiles, and the maximum and minimum values per group. * and ** = p-values < 0.05 and 0.01 versus untreated group, respectively. In (F), a heatmap showing parasite genome equivalents for each animal is shown.