Cross-Species Surveillance of Leptospira in Domestic and Peri-Domestic Animals in Mahalla City, Gharbeya Governorate, Egypt

Abstract

Abstract. A survey of 179 animals (black rats, dogs, sheep, buffaloes, cattle, donkeys, weasels, and cats) for Leptospira infection was conducted in Mahalla City (Lower Egypt). Blood, urine, and kidney were collected and tested by culture, microscopic agglutination test (MAT), and/or polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Among rats, 26% were positive by PCR, including 7% that were also positive by culture for L. interrogans serovars Grippotyphosa, Pyrogenes, and Icterohaemorrhagiae. L. borpetersenii serovar Polonica was isolated for the first time in Egypt in three rats. MAT titers ≥ 1:800 were observed in 11% of rats and 12% of dogs. L. interrogans serovar Grippotyphosa was detected in one cat. Sheep and donkeys were negative for leptospirosis by all methods. Buffaloes and cattle were seropositive in 20% and 44% of animals, respectively. Data indicate that several pathogenic serovars are circulating in the animals, which may pose exposure risks and account for high rates of acute febrile illness.

Leptospirosis in animals and human contacts in Egypt: broad range surveillance

“…Regarding rats, a recent study (3) found that the detection rate of Leptospira antibodies was lower (23%) compared with an earlier study from Egypt (55.4%) (4) and many other reports from different parts of the world (17) (18) (19) . However, the same study (3) reported that dogs had never been evaluated as carriers of Leptospira in Egypt, and the observed seroprevalence in that study was 12%, which was similar to the seroprevalence reported in Italy (20) and Thailand (21) but much lower than that reported in Germany (22) , Mexico (23) and the USA (24) .…”

“…In Egypt, recent surveillance of AFI (acute febrile illness) patients revealed that among the areas tested, Mahalla city showed a higher frequency of leptospirosis compared with other regions of the country (7) (15) . Therefore, approximately four years later, another study was published providing data on the distribution of leptospirosis in animals in Mahalla (3) . Prior to this study, the most recent animal surveys in Egypt were conducted in Cairo over 20 years ago (4) .…”

“…Living and working in close contact with animals or their waste may present greater opportunities for exposure and infection (3) .…”

“…Most patients with AFI are currently empirically diagnosed as typhoid or brucellosis cases and treated accordingly with chloramphenicol or tetracycline derivatives (6) . More recently, cross-species surveillance of Leptospira in animals has been carried out in the vicinity of Mahalla, a portion of a governorate of Egypt, to determine the most common serovars affecting this region (3) . The fi ndings of this study suggested that wild and domestic mammals are important sources of pathogenic leptospires in Mahalla City.…”

A serological survey of agents causing leptospirosis and toxoplasmosis in Rattus rattus in the city of Umuarama, northwest Paraná, Brazil

“…The prevalence of leptospirosis in rodents, as determined by the level of antibodies raised in response to different serovars, ranges from 3.33% to 30.2% in different countries (AGUDELO-FLÓREZ et al, 2009;FELT et al, 2011;GAROUSSI et al, 2006;HALLIDAY et al, 2013;LILENBAUM, 2013;MGODE et al, 2014;MOHAMED et al, 2010;SPOHR, 2009;WANG;HE, 2013). In Brazil, leptospirosis positivity rates of 9.3% and 17% were detected in Paraná (PR) (SPOHR, 2009) and Rio de Janeiro (MARTINS; LILENBAUM, 2013), respectively.…”