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PubMed2002

Animal- and herd-level risk factors for leptospiral seropositivity among sows in the Mekong delta, Vietnam.

In 1998, a total of 424 sows had sera collected in the Mekong delta in Vietnam. Of these, 283 sows were from 151 small-scale family farms in 19 villages, and 141 from seven large-scale state farms. The sera were subjected to the microscopic agglutination test (MAT) for antibodies to 13 Leptospira serovars. The overall leptospiral seroprevalence for titres > or =1:100 and > or =1:400, was 73 and 29%, respectively, and was higher (P=0.001) at small- than at large-scale farms. The highest seroprevalence was recorded for Leptospira interrogans serovar (sv) bratislava (52%). At small-scale farms, higher prevalences were found to serovars L. interrogans sv icterohaemorrhagiae (P=0.04) and L. interrogans sv pomona (P=0.02). Epidemiological information (at the individual-animal and herd-levels) was collected with a questionnaire. The data were analysed using logistic multiple regression. At the animal-level, sows seropositive for L. interrogans sv australis and sv autumnalis had less direct contact with sows in neighbouring pens (odds ratio (OR)=0.3 and 0.4, respectively) and sows seronegative for L. interrogans sv bratislava were of lower age (OR=0.1 for seropositivity). Also, sows seropositive for L. interrogans sv icterohaemorrhagiae had higher odds (OR=5.8) if they had not been born on the farm (had been introduced to it as gilts). Herds seropositive for sv javanica showed association with farms not taking measures to control the local rodent population (OR=7.8). Serovar pomona was also linked to the use of artificial insemination (AI), as opposed to natural-breeding services (OR=11.2). These results indicate that housing and management could affect the seroprevalence of Leptospira infection in pigs.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2000

Prevalence of antibodies to Leptospira serovars in sheep and goats in Alto Adige-South Tyrol.

Serum samples from 313 sheep and 95 goats were collected during November 1993 in 26 localities in Alto Adige-South Tyrol and tested by microscopic agglutination test for antibodies to 28 serovars of the genus Leptospira. At the time of blood collection all the animals appeared healthy with no clinical sign suggestive of leptospirosis. The observed seroprevalence in sheep was 6.1%, whereas the seropositivity rate for goat serum samples was 2.1%. The highest serological prevalence in sheep was recorded for serovar castellonis, followed by poi, sejroe, hardjo subtype hardjobovis, copenhageni, and cynopteri. Titres to poi were the only ones found in goats. These findings, which are proof of Leptospira infection in Alto Adige-South Tyrol, indicate that foci of several serovars exist in this region.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Rodents and Leptospira transmission risk in Terceira island (Azores).

The role of rodents as Leptospira renal carriers in Terceira island was evaluated (1993-1995) through kidney culture and serology [microscopic aglutination test (MAT)] of 94 mice and rats. Fifty-nine animals were positive (n = 41 by serology + culturing; n = 11 serology; n = 7 culturing), presenting a wide distribution in man-made and natural areas. House mice had the highest bacteriological (82.9%) and serological (90.9%) rates, being strictly related to serovar arborea. Black rats were involved in the dispersion of all isolated L. interrogans sensu lato serovars (arborea, copenhageni and icterohaemorrhagiae). Logistic regression analysis and non-metric multi-dimensional scaling, relating Leptospira infection with biological and environmental variables, expressed that adult males Mus domesticus, sexually active and living in humid biotopes, mainly above 500 m, are the most likely reservoirs. This study emphasizes the role of house-mice in the epidemiology of leptospirosis in Terceira and the need of reducing the risk of Leptospira transmission through integrated control programmes, primarily focusing on adult house-mice in peri-domestic environments, before the breeding season.

Animals↗

PubMed1977

Plasma concentrations of steroid hormones in sows infected experimentally with Leptospira pomona or porcine enterovirus strain T1 in late gestation.

Plasma levels of progesterone, corticosteroids and oestrone were determined during the late stages of pregnancy in four sows experimentally infected with Leptospira pomona and in a group of three sows in which fetuses were inoculated in utero with a strain of porcine enterovirus. Only one of the seven infected sows farrowed at full term. All fetuses were dead and delivery was prolonged in litters infected with the virus. In the sows with leptospirosis almost all piglets were expelled dead or in a weak condition. The amounts of progesterone in plasma were within the normal range and showed a decrease shortly before abortion similar to that observed before parturition in normal animals. The elevation in plasma corticosteroids at normal parturtion was not seen at abortion. An irregular pattern with rising levels of plasma oestrone was found in most sows. Peak levels of oestrone were usually reached close to the time of delivery, but occured earlier in most sows which aborted well before term. In conclusion differences were noted between the endocrine patterns in normal parturition and in abortion caused by infectious agents in sows.

Abortion, Veterinary↗

PubMed2003

[A case of acute pancreatitis due to Weil's disease].

Leptospirosis, the most common vasculitic zoonosis in the world, is characterized with jaundice and acute renal failure. However, pancreatitis is an uncommon complication of leptospirosis. In this report, an acute pancreatitis case due to Weil's disease has been presented. A 31-year-old female patient with high levels of glucose, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, creatine kinase, bilirubin, amylase and lipase, has been diagnosed to have leptospirosis by the high positive result (1/800) of microscopic agglutination test against Leptospira interrogans serogroup icterohemorrhagiae. The patient has been treated with supportive and symptomatic therapy, and with penicillin G for leptospirosis. Following triple hemodialysis, all the blood biochemistry tests returned to normal on the tenth day of therapy. This case was reported to draw attention to Leptospira infections which should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with jaundice and pancreatitis.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1990

[Immunologic monitoring of leptospirosis in the Maritime Territory].

The epidemiological and epizootic situation in Leptospira infections at the Maritime [correction of Primorski] Territory is evaluated on the basis of complex studies carried out in 1984-1989. As revealed in these studies, cases of leptospirosis among humans have a sporadic character and are mainly registered among professional high risk groups of the population. In the immunological structure of persons covered by the survey L. hebdomadis, L. pomona and L. javanica prevail. The anthropourgic foci of leptospirosis caused by L. pomona are of the leading epidemiological importance. Swine serves as the main source of infection in these foci. The study revealed the epidemic danger of the natural foci of leptospirosis caused by L. grippotyphosa and L. javanica in rice fields where the decisive factors of leptospirosis proved to be reed voles and striped field mice serving as reservoirs of this infection, as well as the synanthropic foci of leptospirosis caused by L. hebdomadis with house mice serving as the main carriers.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

Expression and characterization of HlyX hemolysin from Leptospira interrogans serovar Copenhageni: potentiation of hemolytic activity by LipL32.

The HlyX, a putative hemolysin identified from the Leptospira genomes, was cloned, expressed in Escherichia coli, purified, and its hemolytic activity was confirmed. Mouse polyclonal antiserum against the recombinant HlyX recognized HlyX-related antigens in a panel of Leptospira species extracts and it was also able to abolish the hemolytic activity of HlyX. A mixture of HlyX and LipL32, a known hemolysin from Leptospira, induced hemolysis in a synergistic way that was fully inhibited by antiserum against either protein. Moreover, sera from patients with leptospirosis also recognized the recombinant HlyX, showing that it is presented to the host immune system during Leptospira infection.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1986

Spirochetes in ticks and antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi in white-tailed deer from Connecticut, New York State, and North Carolina.

Ticks were screened for spirochetes and serum samples from white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) were assayed for antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi during 1983-1984. Using fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled rabbit antibodies produced to B. burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease, spirochetes were detected in Ixodes dammini (10.5% of 1,193) and Dermacentor albipictus (0.6% of 157) adults from Connecticut, I. dammini nymphs (49.1% of 108) and adults (64.7% of 99) from Armonk, New York, and in I. scapularis (0.4% of 531) and Amblyomma americanum (3.5% of 173) adults from North Carolina. Infected ticks were either seeking hosts or feeding on deer during the summer and fall. Direct fluorescent antibody staining also revealed spirochetes in two larvae of I. scapularis that emerged from eggs deposited by separate females in the laboratory. Using indirect immunofluorescence tests, antibodies to B. burgdorferi were identified in white-tailed deer living in tick-infested areas of all three states. Aside from minor cross-reactivity, there was no serologic evidence of Treponema or Leptospira infections. Ixodes dammini is a primary vector of B. burgdorferi in northeastern United States, but in North Carolina, other ixodid ticks may transmit this spirochete to humans and wildlife.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Causes of leptospirosis morbidity in Krasnodar region].

The situation in leptospirosis morbidity in the Krasnodar Territory has been analyzed. The tendency towards a decrease in the number of water outbreaks and a growth in the number of sporadic cases has been noted. Antibodies to Leptospira ictrohaemorrhagiae, whose natural carriers are gray rats, are most often detected in the blood of patients. Among leptospirosis patients, persons engaged in fishing, work on plots of land adjoining their summer cottages, dog breeding are mostly registered. The detailed characterization of the outbreak of 1997, an outstanding outbreak among those observed in recent years, is given. This outbreak was caused by abundant precipitations and the subsequent flooding of vast areas, a growth in the number of Leptospira-infected rodents. In this connection attention is drawn to the necessity of greater efforts in carrying out deratization, as well as sanitary and veterinarian measures.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1989

Serosurvey of Leptospira agglutinins among railway employees in the National Railway Compartments of Bologna and Venice.

An epidemiological investigation was performed to evaluate the prevalence of anti-leptospiral agglutinins within a selected population: the railway workers of the Italian Railway Compartments of Bologna and Venice. Leptospira infection prevalence was found to be 10.38%, which represents the highest frequency ever reported in Italy. There was a significantly higher prevalence of agglutinins among the staff of the Railway Compartment of Venice. A clear prevalence of the bratislava serovar was registered, followed by the australis serovar and the icterohaemorrhagiae serovar. The influence of different kinds of railway work and that of supposed risk factors, such as hobbies and housing conditions, together with the influence of the ABO blood groups on the distribution of Leptospira agglutinins, are discussed.

ABO Blood-Group System↗

PubMed1979

Experimentally induced Leptospira interrogans serovar autumnalis infections in young swine.

Leptospira interrogans serovar autumnalis strain 621 was proven to be infective for swine by intranasal and ocular inoculation and by contact exposure. The course of the disease was that of a chronic asymptomatic infection. Throughout the experiment, leptospires were observed in all tissues examined by darkfield microscopy of 10% tissue suspensions and examination by indirect fluorescent antibody technique of frozen tissue sections. Infected pigs had increasing antibody titers, as determined by the microscopic agglutination test. The organism spread from intranasally inoculated pigs to contact controls.

Administration, Intranasal↗

PubMedDate not supplied

A new prepatory method of thermically inactivated Leptospira Patoc antigen for rapid slide agglutination used as serosurvey test for human leptospiroses.

830 sera from leptospirosis-suspect patients and 133 sera from investigations were analysed by the new test--rapid slide agglutination with Patoc antigen, inactivated at 60 degrees C for 15 minutes, in parallel with two standard tests--CFT with merthiolated Patoc antigen and MAR with 17-23 live pathogenic antigens. The new serotest proved efficient for selecting the cases of disease or leptospira infection, acute or recent form, not older than 2 years, both by its sensitivity and specificity and also by its rapid and economical character. In the present paper, the technology of preparation and control of Patoc antigen, inactivated at 60 degrees C for 15 minutes, is described.

Agglutination Tests↗

PubMed2005

Evaluation of a monoclonal antibody-based dot-blot ELISA for detection of Leptospira spp in bovine urine samples.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of a novel monoclonal antibody (MAb)-based dot-blot ELISA for detection of Leptospira antigens in urine samples of cattle. SAMPLE POPULATION: Blood and urine samples of 45 test cattle from 5 farms in Chonburi province and 20 control cattle from 2 farms in Khon Kaen province in Thailand. PROCEDURE: Blood and urine samples were assayed (microscopic agglutination test and urine antigen test) for Leptospira infection by use of an MAb-based dot-blot ELISA, and results for the ELISA were compared with those for dark-field microscopy (DFM), microbial culture, and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. RESULTS: All urine samples with positive results for DFM, microbial culture, PCR assay, or > 1 of these tests also had positive results when tested by use of the MAb-based dot-blot ELISA, except for 1 sample that had positive results only for the PCR assay. Detection limits of the dot-blot ELISA were 10(3) leptospires/mL of urine and 9.3 ng of Leptospira homogenate. Comparison revealed that the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, efficacy (accuracy), positive predictive value, and negative predictive value for the ELISA were in agreement with results for DFM (100%, 72.72%, 80%, 57.14%, and 100%, respectively), microbial culture (100%, 61.54%, 66.62%, 28.57%, and 100%, respectively), and PCR assay (95.45%, 100%, 91.77%, 100%, and 95.83%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The MAb-based dot-blot ELISA is suitable as a tool for detecting leptospires in urine samples of cattle.

Animals↗

PubMed1988

[Characteristics of the interaction of Leptospira with the host organism in the infectious process in golden hamsters].

The comparative evaluation of the interaction of L. icterohaemorrhagiae strain P, L. canicola strain CL and L. hebdomadis strain 650 with golden hamster liver and kidney cells is presented. Three variants of the course of Leptospira infection have been distinguished: (1) the hepato-renal (icteric) variant, caused by the adhesion of leptospires to liver cells with the colonization of their surface and the disaggregation of liver-cell complexes and by the accumulation of leptospires in the kidney interstice; as a consequence, parenchymatous hepatitis and nephroso-nephritis develop, which lead to the death of animals; (2) the renal (anicteric) variant, characterized by the absence of the infective agent and lesions in the liver, by adhesion of leptospires to and their colonization of the nephrothelium of the proximal convoluted tubules of the kidneys; in this case some of the animals die because of renal insufficiency and shock, while in the surviving animals prolonged carrier state develops; (3) the intermediate variant, characterized by the initial process of leptospiral adhesion and colonization in the liver and its subsequent progress in the kidneys.

Animals↗

PubMed1987

[Epidemiology of Ixodes-Borreliosis in Southern Germany].

Intimate adaptation occurs between European strains of Borrelia burgdorferi and the local hard tick Ixodes ricinus. I. dammini, the important vector in USA, could not be infected experimentally with a strain of the lyme spirochete from Southern Germany. Other species of blood suckers are sometimes able to maintain uptaken spirochetes for a few days, but never to compensate the tick vector. Man seems to be a good host for B. burgdorferi but without epidemiological significance due to his poor vector role for ticks. The Ixodes-borreliosis is an anthropozoonosis. Well-known animal hosts for the three life stages of the tick are possible carrier hosts for B. burgdorferi as well. It has been established here for the first time in Europe that common wild-rodent species may be of some significance as hosts for the spirochete, as it is well-known in North America. Serological evidence shows, that dogs and grasing cattle in Southern Germany seem to play an important role in B. burgdorferi's outdoor circulation. 36 out of 72 dogs (= 50%) and 22 out of 66 cattle (= 33%) reacted significantly positive in the IFAT if local strains of B. burgdorferi were used as antigen. No serological cross reactions have been observed with Leptospira infections in dogs and cattles.

Animals↗

PubMed1998

A review of leptospirosis in farm animals in Portugal.

This paper presents a review of Leptospira infection in farm animals in Portugal which is based mainly on serological results obtained in the National Veterinary Research Laboratory between January 1987 and December 1993. Serum samples were tested by the microscopic agglutination test, at a minimum dilution of 1:100. Positive titres were obtained in 15.3% of the 9,543 bovine samples examined. Sejroe, Pomona, Hebdomadis, Tarassovi and Icterohaemorrhagiae were the principal serogroups which reacted in the tests. A total of 3,195 pigs were tested, of which 20.2% showed positive reactions. The main serogroups which reacted were Australis, Pomona, Cynopteri, Icterohaemorrhagiae and Autumnalis. Field observations on outbreaks of leptospirosis in pigs, along with data obtained from an experimental infection with serovar mozdok in pregnant gilts suggest that this serovar, rather than serovar pomona, may be causing Pomona group infections in pigs. Serum samples from 5,298 sheep were tested and 3.3% gave positive results. The predominant serogroups involved were Canicola, Pomona, Cynopteri, Sejroe and Icterohaemorrhagiae. From the 1,631 goats examined serologically, 5.0% gave positive results, mainly to serogroups Grippotyphosa, Canicola, Pomona, Icterohaemorrhagiae and Pyrogenes. Only 83 serum samples from horses were obtained, of which 43.4% showed positive titres. Serogroups Australis, Autumnalis, Cynopteri and Pyrogenes were those most commonly found. Serological evidence of leptospirosis in farm animals is widespread in Portugal, particularly in cattle and pigs. Leptospirosis in horses needs to be studied further. In an attempt to provide a general view on the occurrence of leptospirosis in these animal species in Portugal, the present results are compared with results obtained in previous studies and are complemented with both previous and recent bacteriological findings.

Agglutination Tests↗

PubMed1994

Effect of immune serum, an antibiotic, and a corticosteroid used alone or in combination on experimental leptospirosis in Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus).

We studied the effects of immune sera, an antibiotic, and a corticosteroid used alone or in combination on leptospira infection in Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). The results suggest that the combined used of immune serum and corticosteroid (pledonizoron: PZ) inhibits the effects of serum and the marked effects of antibiotic (procaine penicillin-G: PC-G) on leptospirosis. PZ had no effects and rather shortened the survival period. PZ did not affect the effects of PC-G when used in combination. These results suggest that treatment of leptospirosis with corticosteroids requires special caution.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗

PubMed1992

Occupational hazard of unnoticed leptospirosis in water ways maintenance staff.

A serological survey was performed with M.A.T. on the maintenance staff of water ways and public works and lock keepers to study the occupational hazards of leptospirosis. The target population was 58 professional people, 40 working on French rivers and 18 on a channel in the same western area of France. When we compared serological tests between these two groups, no significant difference appeared. But when we linked fish handling to close contact with water, we found a higher number of positive tests in the channel group than in the rivers group (P less than 0.01). We conclude that people working on the channel were susceptible to unnoticed Leptospira infection.

Adult↗