Monitoring of Leptospira species diversity in freshwater bathing area and in rats in Paris, France

Richard, Elise; Geslin, Jacques; Wurtzer, Sébastien; Moulin, Laurent

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155121

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 57 publications

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“…prevalence was higher in Rattus norvegicus (26.1%), especially compared to bank voles and wood mice. This prevalence in rats is comparable to values reported in previous studies conducted in French [11,19,25,26,55,56] and other European cities [8,44,57]. Our result reinforces the rat's significance as a key carrier of leptospires.…”

Section: Plos Onesupporting

confidence: 90%

Prevalence, genetic diversity and eco-epidemiology of pathogenic Leptospira species in small mammal communities in urban parks Lyon city, France

Garcia-Lopez,

Lurier,

Bouilloud

et al. 2024

PLoS ONE

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Rodents are recognized as the main reservoirs of Leptospira spp. Rats, in particular, serve as hosts for the widely predominant Leptospira interrogans serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae, found worldwide. Several studies have shown the importance of other reservoirs, such as mice or hedgehogs, which harbor other leptospires’ serovars. Nevertheless, our knowledge of circulating Leptospira spp. in reservoirs other than rats remains limited. In this context, we proposed an eco-health approach to assess the health hazard associated with leptospires in urban green spaces, where contacts between human/small mammals and domestic animals are likely. We studied the prevalence, the diversity of circulating strains, and epidemiology of pathogenic Leptospira species in small terrestrial mammal communities (rodents and shrews), between 2020–2022, in two parks in Lyon metropolis, France. Our study showed a significant carriage of Leptospira spp. in small terrestrial mammals in these parks and unveiled a global prevalence rate of 11.4%. Significant variations of prevalence were observed among the small mammal species (from 0 to 26.1%), with Rattus norvegicus exhibiting the highest infection levels (26.1%). We also observed strong spatio-temporal variations in Leptospira spp. circulation in its reservoirs. Prevalence seems to be higher in the peri-urban park and in autumn in 2021 and 2022. This is potentially due to differences in landscape, abiotic conditions and small mammal communities’ composition. Our study suggests an important public health relevance of rats and in a lesser extent of other rodents (Apodemus spp., Clethrionomys glareolus and Mus musculus) as reservoirs of L. interrogans, with rodent species carrying specific serogroups/serovars. We also emphasize the potential hazard associated between the shrew Crocidura russula and L. kirschneri. Altogether, these results improve our knowledge about the prevalence of leptospirosis in an urban environment, which is an essential prerequisite for the implementation of prevention of associated risks.

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