Seroepidemiological Surveillance of Livestock Within an Endemic Focus of Leishmaniasis Caused by Leishmania infantum Martín-Sánchez, Joaquina Trujillos-Pérez, María Ángeles Torres Llamas, Andrés Díaz-Sáez, Victoriano Morillas-Márquez, Francisco Ibáñez De Haro, Patricia de Torres, Francisca L. Ortiz, Antonio Morales Yuste, Manuel Leishmania spp. Seroprevalence Sheep Goat Cattle Pig Leishmaniasis by Leishmania infantum has a zoonotic transmission cycle involving an increasing number of mammalian hosts, forming a cooperative network. The sand fly feeding on livestock is evidenced, but clinical confirmation regarding their infection is limited. We aimed to evaluate Leishmania seroprevalence in livestock to assess its impact on leishmaniasis epidemiology in an endemic area located in the Mediterranean region. A cross-sectional serological study screened livestock exposure to L. infantum and risk factors in Southern Spain. A total of 864 serum samples of clinically healthy sheep, goats, cattle, and pigs were examined by an indirect fluorescence antibody test, using a 1/80 cut-off titre to minimize cross-reactions. Global seroprevalence was 10.8%: 21.6% cattle, 15.4% sheep, 7.3% goats, and 0.6% pigs. Statistically significant differences in positive detection were observed among species (p < 0.001) and natural regions (p < 0.001). High positive reactions in cattle, goats, and sheep suggest livestock exposure to Leishmania spp. and potential asymptomatic infection. Livestock presence in biotopes could promote a dilution effect, reducing human leishmaniasis incidence. Further investigation is needed to confirm livestock roles in leishmaniasis maintenance and transmission. 2025-07-04T10:38:22Z 2025-07-04T10:38:22Z 2025-05-22 journal article Martín-Sánchez, J.; Trujillos-Pérez, M.Á.; Torres-Llamas, A.; Díaz-Sáez, V.; Morillas-Márquez, F.; Ibáñez-De Haro, P.; de Torres, F.L.; Ortiz, A.; Morales-Yuste, M. Seroepidemiological Surveillance of Livestock Within an Endemic Focus of Leishmaniasis Caused by Leishmania infantum. Animals 2025, 15, 1511. [DOI: 10.3390/ani15111511] https://hdl.handle.net/10481/105075 10.3390/ani15111511 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ open access Atribución 4.0 Internacional MDPI