Abstract
This pilot study describes the prevalence of Leptospira infection and exposure in livestock species, cattle, pig, sheep, and goats in Saint Kitts in the Caribbean region. Serum and kidney samples were collected from cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats at a local abattoir between September 2016 and March 2017. Cattle had the highest seroprevalence (79.8%) followed by pigs (64.8%), sheep (39.4%), and goats (24.8%). Highest seroprevalence was observed to serovars, Mankarso in cattle, Bratislava in pigs, Hardjo in sheep, and goats. Leptospira DNA was amplified from kidney samples of 18/99 cattle (18.2%), 11/106 pigs (10.4%), 4/106 sheep (3.8%), and 2/105 goats (1.9%). Our findings warrant further studies to assess leptospirosis associated economic burden to subsistence farmers and public health impact.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cabral Pires, B. et al., 2018. Occurrence of uterine carriers for Leptospira interrogans on slaughtered cows, Microb Pathog, 114, 163–165
Cortizo, P. et al., 2015. Risk factors to incidental leptospirosis and its role on the reproduction of ewes and goats of Espirito Santo state, Brazil, Trop Anim Health Prod, 47, 231–235
Dietrich, M. et al., 2014. Diversification of an emerging pathogen in a biodiversity hotspot: Leptospira in endemic small mammals of Madagascar, Molecular Ecology, 23, 2783–2796
Dorjee, S. et al., 2008. Prevalence of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in sheep in a sheep-only abattoir in New Zealand, N Z Vet J, 56, 164–170
Ellis, W.A., 2015. Animal leptospirosis, Curr Top Microbiol Immunol, 387, 99–137
Fang, F. et al., 2015. Shedding and seroprevalence of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in sheep and cattle at a New Zealand Abattoir, Zoonoses Public Health, 62, 258–268
Figueiredo da Costa, D. et al., 2018. Susceptibility among breeds of sheep experimentally infected with Leptospira interrogans Pomona serogroup, Microb Pathog, 122, 79–83
Kosgey, I.S. et al., 2006. Successes and failures of small ruminant breeding programmes in the tropics: a review, Small Ruminant Research, 61, 13–28
Levett, P.N., Whittington, C.U., and Camus, E., 1996. Serological survey of leptospirosis in livestock animals in the Lesser Antilles, Ann N Y Acad Sci, 791, 369–377
Libonati, H., Pinto, P.S., and Lilenbaum, W., 2017. Seronegativity of bovines face to their own recovered leptospiral isolates, Microb Pathog, 108, 101–103
Libonati, H.A. et al., 2018. Leptospirosis is strongly associated to estrus repetition on cattle, Trop Anim Health Prod,
Martins, G. et al., 2012. Leptospirosis as the most frequent infectious disease impairing productivity in small ruminants in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Trop Anim Health Prod, 44, 773–777
Pappas, G. et al., 2008. The globalization of leptospirosis: worldwide incidence trends, Int J Infect Dis, 12, 351–357
Pinto Pda, S. et al., 2016. A systematic review on the microscopic agglutination test seroepidemiology of bovine leptospirosis in Latin America, Trop Anim Health Prod, 48, 239–248
Pinto, P.S. et al., 2017. Plurality of Leptospira strains on slaughtered animals suggest a broader concept of adaptability of leptospires to cattle, Acta Trop, 172, 156–159
Pratt, N., and Rajeev, S., 2018. Leptospira seroprevalence in animals in the Caribbean region: A systematic review, Acta Trop, 182, 34–42
Pratt, N., Conan, A., and Rajeev, S., 2017. Leptospira Seroprevalence in Domestic Dogs and Cats on the Caribbean Island of Saint Kitts, Vet Med Int, 2017, 5904757
Saulnier, D.D., Brolin Ribacke, K., and von Schreeb, J., 2017. No Calm After the Storm: A Systematic Review of Human Health Following Flood and Storm Disasters, Prehospital and Disaster Medicine, 32, 568–579
Stoddard, R.A., 2013. Detection of pathogenic Leptospira spp. through real-time PCR (qPCR) targeting the LipL32 gene, Methods Mol Biol, 943, 257–266
Vokaty, S., and Torres, J.G., 1997. Meat from small ruminants and public health in the Caribbean, Rev Sci Tech, 16, 426–432
Acknowledgements
We thank the Saint Kitts Department of Agriculture and Abattoir staff for permission and help in sample acquisition.
Funding
The project was supported by intramural funding from Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, One Health Center for Zoonosis and Tropical Veterinary Medicine.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Ethical approval
All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Shiokawa, K., Welcome, S., Kenig, M. et al. Epidemiology of Leptospira infection in livestock species in Saint Kitts. Trop Anim Health Prod 51, 1645–1650 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-019-01859-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-019-01859-5