Department of Veterinary Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
Department of Veterinary Pathology and Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
PLoS One. 2020 Mar 10;15(3):e0230048. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0230048. eCollection 2020.
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.
钩端螺旋体病是最广泛流行的人畜共患病之一，可在全球范围内感染人类和动物。健康的猫作为人类潜在的暴露源，由于这种物种与钩端螺旋体属感染相关的明显临床症状缺乏，可能被低估。本研究旨在通过血清学、分子和细菌学方法确定马来西亚收容所猫的钩端螺旋体暴露、排出和携带状态。为此，对来自两个收容所的 82 只健康猫进行了采样。使用显微镜凝集试验（MAT）、聚合酶链反应（PCR）和细菌培养法检测血液、尿液和肾脏。根据血清学、分子和/或培养技术，钩端螺旋体感染的总检出率为 29.3%（n=24/82）。通过培养技术，检测到 16.7%（n=4/24）的阳性猫为带菌者，其肾脏培养呈阳性，有一只猫的尿液和肾脏均培养呈阳性。通过血清学和分子方法，分离株被鉴定为致病性 L. interrogans 血清型巴塔维亚。通过血清学技术，87.5%（n=21/24）的抗体滴度呈阳性（100-1600），大多数为巴塔维亚血清群（n=19/21）。通过 PCR，87.5%（n=24/24）的猫尿液中存在致病性 Leptospira spp. DNA。此外，4 只培养阳性的猫中有 3 只血清学阴性。本研究首次从自然感染猫获得的尿液和肾脏中回收了致病性钩端螺旋体。结果为自然感染猫在钩端螺旋体传播中的潜在作用提供了证据。此外，猫钩端螺旋体感染呈亚临床感染。培养分离提供了健康猫可能成为钩端螺旋体感染储主的证据，这一信息可能促进针对猫群的疾病预防策略的制定。
