Seroprevalence of Leptospirosis in the Feral Cat Population of St. Kitts

Betance, Larry; Peda, Andrea; Conan, Anne; Ribeiro, Jessica

doi:10.5147/jart.v0i0.108

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Serologically, 25.6% (n = 21/82) of the cats had positive antibody titers (100-1,600) against the pathogenic serogroups, namely Bataviae, Javanica, and Ballum. Cats in this study had higher leptospiral serodetection compared to that of other recent cats studies in the USA, Brazil, Iran, Canada, Taiwan, and Germany, which ranged between 4.8% and 17.9% [11][12][13][14][31][32][33][34], but lower serodetection compared to those reported in Greece and Serbia, which ranged between 26% and 33% [35,36]. MAT test results may vary because of the serovar panel used in the geographical area of interest and the cut-off value.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

First report of pathogenic Leptospira spp. isolated from urine and kidneys of naturally infected cats

Alashraf¹,

Lau²,

Khairani-Bejo³

et al. 2020

PLoS ONE

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Leptospirosis is one of the most widespread zoonotic diseases and can infect both humans and animals worldwide. Healthy cat, as a potential source of exposure to humans, are likely underestimated owing to the lack of overt clinical signs associated with Leptospira spp. infection in this species. The aim of the study was to determine the exposure, shedding, and carrier status of leptospires in shelter cats in Malaysia by using serological, molecular, and bacteriological methods. For this study, 82 healthy cats from two shelters were sampled. The blood, urine, and kidneys were tested using the microscopic agglutination test (MAT), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and bacterial culture. On the basis of serological, molecular, and/or culture techniques, the total detection of leptospiral infection was 29.3% (n = 24/ 82). Through culture techniques, 16.7% (n = 4/24) of the cats that tested positive were carriers with positive kidney cultures, and one cat was culture positive for both urine and kidney. The Leptospira spp. isolates were identified as pathogenic L. interrogans serovar Bataviae through serological and molecular methods. Through serological techniques, 87.5% (n = 21/24) had positive antibody titers (100-1600) and most of the Bataviae serogroup (n = 19/ 21). Using PCR, 16.7% (n = 4/24) of cats were shown to have pathogenic Leptospira spp. DNA in their urine. Furthermore, three out of four culture positive cats were serology negative. The present study reports the first retrieval of pathogenic leptospires from urine and kidneys obtained from naturally infected cats. The results provide evidence of the potential role of naturally infected cats in the transmission of leptospires. Additionally, leptospiral infection occurs sub-clinically in cats. The culture isolation provides evidence that healthy cats could be reservoirs of leptospiral infection, and this information may promote the development of disease prevention strategies for the cat population.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

First report of pathogenic Leptospira spp. isolated from urine and kidneys of naturally infected cats

Alashraf¹,

Lau²,

Khairani-Bejo³

et al. 2020

PLoS ONE

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“…This was not unexpected, as it has been shown that older age is associated with higher antibody titers, probably due to longer possible exposure times. 10,46,47 One of the goals of our study was to determine if there were geographic clusters of urinary shedding or seropositivity on PEI. The cats in our study came from various locations throughout PEI and no single location was overrepresented.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This was not unexpected, as it has been shown that older age is associated with higher antibody titers, probably due to longer possible exposure times. 10,47,48…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serologic and urinary survey of exposure to Leptospira species in a feral cat population of Prince Edward Island, Canada

Bourassi

Savidge

Foley

et al. 2021

Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery

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Objectives Recent studies show that cats could play an important role in the transmission of Leptospira species. There are few reports of leptospirosis on Prince Edward Island (PEI) and none in cats. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of serum antibodies against Leptospira serovars and of Leptospira DNA in the urine of a population of free-roaming cats. Methods Paired blood and urine samples were collected from 200 cats brought to a trap–neuter–return program. Antibody titers against six Leptospira serovars (Bratislava, Canicola, Gryppotyphosa, Hardjo, Pomona, Icterohaemorrhagiae) were determined by microscopic agglutination test. PCR was performed on urine samples to identify urine shedding of Leptospira DNA. Results Antibodies were detected in 20/200 cats (10%) for at least one serovar, with titers ranging from 1:50 to 1:6400 (all serovars tested, except Hardjo). Urine samples of 7/200 cats (3.5%) were PCR-positive. Conclusions and relevance Feral cats in Prince Edward Island (PEI) had a higher than expected exposure to leptospirosis and can shed DNA from pathogenic Leptospira species in urine. Further studies are needed to determine the prevalence of exposure to leptospirosis in other species on PEI and the potential role of feral cats in transmission of the disease.

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“…The detected serogroups were initially isolated from humans (Kmety and Dikken 1993), and later in domestic and wild animals (Rossetti et al 2005;Betance et al 2017;Rajeev et al 2017;Fornazari et al 2018), indicating that these serovars are not species-specific, making studies of their epidemiology more complicated, as transmission networks can be very complex. Little is known about infectious serotypes, their respective wild reservoirs, and their correlation between urban animals and wildlife (Grimm et al 2015).…”

Section: Acta Amazonicamentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection of anti-Leptospira spp. agglutinins in captive South American river turtles, Podocnemis expansa

et al. 2020

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ABSTRACT Leptospirosis is a zoonosis transmitted by contact with infected urine or water contaminated with the agent. Searches for Leptospira spp. in reptiles are scarce although most species have contact with aquatic environments. We evaluated the presence of anti-Leptospira spp. antibodies in Podocnemis expansa housed at the Amazonian Zoobotanical Garden, in Belém, Pará state, Brazil. We analyzed 74 serum samples through the microscopic agglutination test using 31 live antigens from different Leptospira spp. serogroups. Thirty samples (40.5%) were positive against Leptospira spp., with titrations between 100 and 3,200 for one or more serogroups. The Hebdomadis serogroup was the most prevalent, with 26 (87%) out of the 30 positive samples, followed by Djasiman, with two (7%) and Celledoni and Bataviae with one (3%) sample each. The detection of anti-Leptospira spp. agglutinins in P. expansa suggests that the aquatic environment is a transmission route for this pathogen among chelonians.

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Seroprevalence of Leptospirosis in the Feral Cat Population of St. Kitts

Cited by 4 publications

References 9 publications

First report of pathogenic Leptospira spp. isolated from urine and kidneys of naturally infected cats

First report of pathogenic Leptospira spp. isolated from urine and kidneys of naturally infected cats

Serologic and urinary survey of exposure to Leptospira species in a feral cat population of Prince Edward Island, Canada

Detection of anti-Leptospira spp. agglutinins in captive South American river turtles, Podocnemis expansa

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