Detection of Leptospira kmetyi at recreational areas in Peninsular Malaysia

Abstract

Humans can be infected by pathogenic Leptospira through contact with infected animals or contaminated environments. Recreational exposure has been associated with human leptospirosis; however, there is a lack of information on the distribution of Leptospira spp. in recreational areas. Thus, we conducted this study to detect and describe the distributions of Leptospira spp. and to determine the prevalence of pathogenic leptospires at recreational areas in Peninsular Malaysia. Soil and water samples were randomly collected from 33 recreational areas in Peninsular Malaysia from December 2018 to April 2019. Each culture was examined under dark-field microscopy prior to genus confirmation by polymerase chain reaction using primers for the 16S rRNA gene. A total of 390 water and soil samples were collected, and 131 cultures were positive for Leptospira under dark-field microscope examination. Leptospira was identified in most of the recreational areas sampled, and at least one pathogenic Leptospira species was isolated from 17 recreational areas. The prevalence of saprophytic, intermediate, and pathogenic Leptospira spp. was 19.7%, 5.6%, and 8.2%, respectively. The dominant pathogenic species found in the samples was Leptospira kmetyi. This study provides important data on the distribution and prevalence of Leptospira spp. from soil and water, as well as the dominant pathogenic species, at recreational areas in Peninsular Malaysia. Therefore, preventive measures should be taken to ensure the safety of visitors.

Molecular Characterization of Associated Pathogens in Febrile Patients during Inter-Epidemic Periods of Urban Arboviral Diseases in Tapachula Southern Mexico

“…The species detected in our study was L. kmetyi, with 87.38% identity, a finding that has already been reported by some studies [30][31][32] (Figure S2, supplementary). However, most reported cases of leptospirosis are due to L. interrogans, L. kirschneri, and L. noguchii [33].…”

Rickettsial Infections Are Neglected Causes of Acute Febrile Illness in Teluk Intan, Peninsular Malaysia

“…In this cohort, L. interrogans was the most common isolated species amongst our febrile patients. A rare and special finding was that we diagnosed a patient with L. kmetyi infection, which is one of very few clinical cases reported in Malaysia [ 57 , 58 ]. The use of both PCR and MAT for diagnosing leptospirosis in this study increased the chance of disease detection in a similar way in that early diagnosis is facilitated by direct pathogen detection in blood during the bacteremia phase [ 45 , 59 , 60 ].…”

Pathogenic Leptospira contamination in the environment: a systematic review

“…The presence of Pathogenic Leptospira (P1) in soil samples was investigated in 15 out of 38 articles. Six articles investigate contamination in soil samples only from urban areas [ 23 , 25 , 28 , 30 , 31 , 50 ], eight articles investigate only from rural areas [ 16 , 19 , 33 , 41 , 43 , 44 , 51 , 52 ], the remain 1 article investigate in both area [ 48 ]. In total, soil samples from rural and urban were 989 samples.…”