| Summary: | <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Transmission of canine leishmaniasis (CanL), a severe infection caused by <it>L. infantum,</it> usually occurs through the sand fly bite to the vertebrate host. A venereal route of transmission has also been suggested, but this issue is still controversial.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>Here, we report a case of a dog affected by orchitis showing a clinical profile of <it>L. infantum</it> infection. By exploiting a real-time PCR assay, we detected a significantly higher DNA load of the parasite in the lymph node and testis than in blood and urine samples collected from the dog.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results suggest that: 1) <it>L. infantum</it> infection can be associated with testicular lesions in naturally infected dogs; 2) genital involvement could result in shedding of the parasites in the semen, favoring venereal transmission of the disease.</p>
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