Ciência Rural (Jan 2020)

Presence of anti-Leptospira spp. antibodies in captive yellow-spotted river turtles (Podocnemis unifilis) in the Eastern Amazon

  • Juliana Maria Santos Miranda,
  • Katarine de Souza Rocha,
  • Louysse Helene Monteiro,
  • Ianny Watuzy Monteiro Baia,
  • Thamillys Rayssa Marques Monteiro,
  • Jacqueline da Silva Brito,
  • Ellen Yasmin Eguchi Mesquita,
  • Carla Cristina Guimarães de Moraes

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1590/0103-8478cr20190088
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 50, no. 1

Abstract

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ABSTRACT: We describe anti-Leptospira spp. agglutinin in yellow-spotted river turtles (Podocnemis unifilis)in the Amazon region. Ninety-eight serum samples from individuals housed at the Bosque Rodrigues Alves Zoobotanical Garden of Amazonia, Belém, PA, Brazil, were subject to the microscopic agglutination test (MAT) using 19 different Leptospira spp. antigen serogroups. Thirty-four of the 98 samples (35%) were reactive, with titers ranging from 100 to 3200, and eight 8 reactive samples (23.5%) co-agglutinated under two or more serovars.The most common serogroup was Hebdomadis (26.9%, 7/26), followed by Semaranga (23%, 6/26), Shermani (19.2%, 5/26), Djasiman (11.5%, 3/26), and Australis (7.7%, 2/26); Bataviae, Javanica, and Sejroewere represented by a single sample each (3.9%). The presence of turtles reactive to anti-Leptospira spp. antibodies implies exposure to the pathogen.

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