Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Prevalence of Leptospira interrogans antibodies in free-ranging Tayassu pecari of the Southern Pantanal, Brazil, an ecosystem where wildlife and cattle interact

  • Original Research
  • Published:
Tropical Animal Health and Production Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We surveyed a wild population of white-lipped peccaries (Tayassu pecari) in the Brazilian Pantanal for evidence of Leptospira interrogans. Serum samples from 71 free-ranging T. pecari were obtained between 2003 and 2005 in the southern Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul state. We used microscopic microagglutination to test for antibodies against 14 L. interrogans serovars (antibody titers ≥1:100 were considered seropositive). Seventy percent of captured animals tested positive for leptospirosis antibodies. Antibodies against icterohaemorrhagiae and autumnalis serovars were the most prevalent. We used log-linear analyses to test for associations among seropositivity, age class, and sex of captured animals. Seropositivity was strongly associated with animal age class, but independent of sex. Forty-six percent of animals less than 2 years old, 63% of adults during peak reproductive years, and 100% of the oldest age class were seropositive. A nonparametric multivariate procedure (MRPP) showed that the composition of serovar antibody types changed with age, and ANOVA models demonstrated that antibody titers increased with age, suggesting long-term exposure to a greater number and variety (i.e., serovar types) of L. interrogans infections. This study presents the first quantitative survey of antibodies against L. interrogans serovars in a T. pecari population of the Pantanal. The high prevalence of leptospirosis antibodies in free-ranging white-lipped peccaries and the potential impacts on reproduction and population dynamics emphasize the need for further studies investigating the roles of Pantanal wildlife and livestock in the transmission and maintenance of L. interrogans in the environment.

Resumo

Analisamos uma população silvestre de queixadas (Tayassu pecari) no Pantanal Brasileiro para a evidência de Leptospira interrogans. Amostras de soros de 71 queixadas de vida livre foram obtidas de animais capturados entre dezembro de 2003 e abril de 2005 no sul do Pantanal do Estado de Mato Grosso do Sul. Usamos o teste de microaglutinação microscópica para anticorpos contra 14 sorovares de L. interrogans (anticorpos ≥ 1:100 foram considerados como positivas). Setenta por cento dos animais capturados testados foram positivos para a presença de anticorpos de Leptospira. Anticorpos contra icterohaemorrhagiae e autumnalis foram os mais prevalentes. Utilizamos análises log-linear para testar as associações entre soropositividade, classe etária, e sexo. Soropositividade estava fortemente associada com a classe etária dos animais, mas independentes do sexo. Quarenta e seis por cento dos animais com menos de dois anos, 63% dos adultos, durante o pico da idade reprodutiva, e 100% na classe dos mais velhos foram soropositivos. Um procedimento multivariado não-paramétrico (MRPP) indicou que a composição de tipos de anticorpos contra um sorotipo variou com a idade, e os modelos ANOVA demonstraram que os títulos de anticorpos aumentaram com a idade, sugerindo que uma exposição de longo prazo aumentaria o número e a variedade (i.e. tipos de sorovar) de infecções por L. interrogans. Este estudo apresenta a primeira análise quantitativa de anticorpos contra L. interrogans sorovars na população de T. pecari do Pantanal. A alta prevalência de anticorpos de Leptospira em queixadas de vida silvestre e o potencial impacto sobre a reprodução e dinâmica populacional enfatiza a necessidade de mais estudos investigando o papel de outros animais silvestres do Pantanal e de animais de criação na transmissão e manutenção de L. Interrogans neste ambiente.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Acoltzi, A., de la Peña-Moctezuma, A. and Valladares, J.C., 1990. Estudio serólogico de Leptospirosis en una colonia de pécaris de collar (Tayassu tajacu) albergada en el Zoológico de Chapultepec de la ciudad de México. Unpublished Medical Veterinarian thesis, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

  • Aguirre, A.A., Ostfeld, R.S., Tabor, G.M., House, C. and Pearl, M.C., 2002. Conservation Medicine: ecological health in practice, (Oxford University Press, New York)

    Google Scholar 

  • Altrichter, M., Saenz, J.C. and Carillo, E., 1999. Chanchos cariblancos (Tayassu pecari) como depredadorees y dispersores de semillas en el Parque Nacional Corcovado, Costa Rica, Brenesia, 52, 53–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Bharti, A.R., Nally, J.E., Ricaldi, J.N., Mathias, M.A., Diaz, M.M., Lovett, M.A., Levett, P.N., Gilman, R.H., Willig, M.R., Gotuzzo, E. and Vinetz, J.M., 2003. Leptospirosis: a zoonotic disease of global importance, Lancet Infectious Diseases, 3, 757–771

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bodmer, R.E., Puertas, P., Aquino, R., Reyes, C., Fang, T. and Gottdenker, N., 1997. Manejo y uso sustentable de peccaries en la Amazonia Peruana. Occasional Paper of the IUCN Species Survival Commission No. 18, (UICN-Sur Quito, Ecuador y Secretaria CITES, Ginebra, Suiza)

    Google Scholar 

  • Bolin, C.A., 1992. Leptospira interrogans Serovar hardjo Infection of Cattle, Proceedings American Association Bovine Practitioners, 24, 12–14

    Google Scholar 

  • Boqvist, S., Thu, H.T., Vågsholm, I. and Magnusson, U., 2002. The impact of Leptospira seropositivity on reproductive performance in sows in southern Vietnam, Theriogenology, 58, 1327–1335

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carrol, A.G. and Campbell, R.S., 1987. Reproductive and leptospiral studies on beef cattle in central Queensland, Australian Veterinary Journal, 64, 1–5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, J.R., Sulzer, C.R. and Pursell, A.R., 1973. Improved microtechnique for the leptospiral microscopic agglutination test, Applied Microbiology, 25, 976–980

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Corn, J.L., Lee, R.M., Erickson, G.A. and Murphy, C., 1987. Serologic survey for evidence of exposure to vesicular stomatitis virus, pseudorabies virus, brucellosis and leptospirosis in collared peccaries from Arizona, Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 23, 551–557

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Daszak, P., Epstein, J.H., Kilpatrick, A.M., Aguirre, A.A., Karesh, W. and Cunningham, A.A., 2007. Collaborative research approaches to the role of wildlife in zoonotic disease emergence. In: J.E. Childs, J.S. Mackenzie, J.A. Richt (eds), Current topics in microbiology and immunology, vol 315: wildlife and emerging zoonotic diseases: the biology, circumstances and consequences of cross-species transmission. Springer, Berlin, pp 463–475

    Google Scholar 

  • Desmarchelier, P.M., 1987. Human leptospirosis in New South Wales, 1975-1985, The Medical Journal of Australia, 146, 353–357

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Girio, R. J. S., Pereira, F.L.G., Marchiori Filho, M., Mathias, L.A., Herreira, R.C.P., Alessi A.C. and Girio, T.M.S. 2004. Pesquisa de anticorpos contra Leptospira spp. em animais silvestres e em estado feral da região de Nhecolândia, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brasil: utilização da técnica de imuno-histoquímica para detecção do agente. Ciência Rural 34:165–169

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gomes, S.L. and Villela, R., 1999. A descoberta do Paraiso. http://veja.abril.com.br/020699/p_086.html. Accessed 22 Sept 2008

  • Gottgens, J.F., Perry, J.E., Fortney, R.H., Meyer J., Benedict, M. and Wood, B.E., 2001. The Paraguay-Paraná Hidrovia: protecting the Pantanal with lessons from the past, Bioscience, 51, 301–308

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grooms, D.L., 2006. Reproductive losses caused by bovine viral diarrhea virus and leptospirosis, Theriogenology, 66, 624–628

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hathaway, S.C. and Little, T.W.A., 1981. Prevalence and clinical significance of leptospiral antibodies in pigs England, The Veterinary Record, 108, 224–227

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Holmes, J.C., 1996. Parasites as threats to biodiversity in shrinking ecosystems, Biodiversity and Conservation, 5, 975–983

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jorge, R.S.P., 2008. Caracterização do estado sanitario dos carnivoros selvagens da RPPN SESC Pantanal e de animais domesticos da regiao. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Sao Paulo, USP, São Paulo

  • Karesh, W.B., Uhart, M.M., Painter, R.L.E., Wallace, R.B., Braselton, W.E., Thomas, L.A., House, C., Macnamara, T.S. and Gottdenker, N.L., 1998. Health evaluation of white-lipped peccary populations in Bolivia. In: 1998 Proceedings of the Joint Conference of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians and the American Association of Wildlife Veterinarians, (Proceedings of the Joint Conference of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians and the American Association of Wildlife Veterinarians, Omaha, Nebraska), 445–449

  • Keuroghlian, A. and Desbiez, A.L.J., 2010. Biometric and age estimation of live peccaries in the Southern Pantanal, Brazil, Suiform Soundings, 9, 24–35. http://data.iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgs/pphsg/Suiform%20soundings/Newsletter.htm

  • Keuroghlian, A. and Eaton, D.P., 2008a. Fruit availability and peccary frugivory in an isolated Atlantic forest fragment: effects on peccary ranging behavior and habitat use, Biotropica, 40, 62–70

    Google Scholar 

  • Keuroghlian, A. and Eaton, D.P., 2008b. Importance of rare habitats and riparian zones in a tropical forest fragment - preferential use by Tayassu pecari, a wide-ranging frugivore, Journal of Zoology, 275, 283–293

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keuroghlian, A., Eaton, D.P. and Longland, W.S., 2004. Area use by white-lipped and collared peccaries (Tayassu pecari and Tayassu tajacu) in a tropical forest fragment, Biological Conservation, 120, 411–425

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keuroghlian, A., Eaton, D.P. and Desbiez A.L.J., 2009. Habitat use by Peccaries and Feral Pigs of the Southern Pantanal, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, Suiform Soundings, 8, 9–17, http://data.iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgs/pphsg/Suiform%20soundings/Newsletter%208(2).pdf

    Google Scholar 

  • Kingscote, B.F., 1986. Leptospirosis in red foxes in Ontario, Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 22, 475–478

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Levett, P.N., 2001. Leptospirosis, Clinical Microbiology Reviews, 14, 296–326

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Loewenstein, L., McLachlan-Troup, T., Hartley, M. and English, A., 2008. Serological survey for evidence of Leptospira interrogans in free-living platypuses (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), Australian Veterinary Journal, 86, 242–245

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mathias, L.A., Girio, R.J. and Duarte, J.M., 1999. Serosurvey for antibodies against Brucella abortus and Leptospira interrogans in pampas deer from Brazil, Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 35, 112–114

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Matthias, M.A. and Levett, P.N., 2002. Leptospiral carriage by mice and mongooses on the island of Barbados, West Indian Medical Journal, 51, 10–13

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mayor, P., Le Pendu, Y., Guimaraes, D.A., da Silva, J.V., Tavares, L., Tello, M., Pereira, W., Lopez-Bejar, M. and Jori, F., 2006. A health evaluation in a colony of captive collared peccaries (Tayassu tajacu) in the Eastern Amazon, Research in Veterinary Science, 81, 246–253

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McCune, B. and Grace, J.B., 2002. Analysis of ecological communities. MjM Software Design, Gleneden Beach, Oregon, USA

  • McCune, B. and Mefford, M.J. 2006. PC-ORD. Multivariate Analysis of Ecological Data, Version 5.18. MjM Software Design, Gleneden Beach, OR, USA

  • Mendoza, P., Mayor, P., Le Pendu, Y., Guimaraes, D.A., Viana da Silva, J., Tavares, H.L., Tello, M., Pereira, W., Lopez-Béjar, M. and Jori, F., 2007. Antibodies against Leptospira spp. in captive collared peccaries, Peru. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 13, 793–794, http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/13/5/793.htm

  • Mielke, P.W. and Berry, K.J., 2001. Permutation methods: a distance function approach. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Miranda, F.R., 2008. Pesquisa de anticorpos contra bacterias do genero Brucella spp, Leptospira spp, Chlamydophila spp em tamanduas-bandeira (Myrmecophaga tridactyla, Linnaeus, 1758), da RPPN SESC Pantanal, Parque Nacional da Serra da Canastra e Parque Nacional das Emas. Unpublished MS thesis, ESALQ/USP, Piracicaba, São Paulo

  • Paes, R.C.S., Ribeiro, O.C., Carneiro Monteiro, L.A.R., Figueiredo, A.O., Neto, A.A.C., Oliveira, J.M., Da Rosa, G.O., Keuroghlian, A., Piovezan, U. and Herrera, H.M., 2008. Enfermidades de ocorrência no Porco Monteiro (Sus scrofa) no Pantanal Sul-Matogrossense, Brasil. In: 35°Congresso Brasileiro de Veterinária–CONBRAVET, 2008 (Anais do 35°CONBRAVET, 2008, Gramado, RS). http://www.sovergs.com.br/conbravet2008/anais/cd/resumos/R0865-1.pdf

  • Painter, L.R.E. 1998. Gardeners of the forest: plant-animal interactions in a Neotropical forest ungulate community. Unpublished PhD Dissertation, University of Liverpool, Liverpool

  • Pellegrin, A.O., Guimaraes, P.H.S., Sereno, J.R.B., Figueiredo, J.P., Lage, A.P., Moreira, E.C. and Leite, R.C., 1999. Prevalência da leptospirose em bovinos do Pantanal Mato-Grossense, Comunicado Técnico Embrapa Pantanal, 22, 1–9

    Google Scholar 

  • Prescott, J.F. and Zuerner, R.L., 1993. Leptospira. In: C.L. Gyles and C.O. Thoen (eds), Pathogenesis of bacterial infections in animals, 2nd Edition, (Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa) 287–296

    Google Scholar 

  • Santos, S.A., Pellegrin, A.O., Moraes, A.S., Barros, A.T.M., Comastri Filho, J.A., Serreno, J.R.B., Silva, R.A.M.S. and Abreu, U.G.P., 2002. Sistema de produção de gado de corte do Pantanal, (Embrapa, Corumbá, Sistema de Produção)

    Google Scholar 

  • Silman, M.R., Terborgh, J.R. and Kiltie, R.A. 2003. Population regulation of a dominant rain forest tree by a major seed predator, Ecology, 84, 431–438

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sokal, R.R. and Rohlf, F.J., 1994. Biometry: the principles and practice of statistics in biological research, 3rd Edition, (W.H. Freeman and Company, New York, NY)

    Google Scholar 

  • Sowls, L.K., 1997. Javelinas and other Peccaries, 2nd Edition, (Texas A&M University Press, Texas)

    Google Scholar 

  • Tomich, R.G.P., Bomfim, M.R.Q., Koury, M., Pellegrin, A.O., Pellegrin, L.A., Ko, A.I. and Barbosa-Stanciol, E.F., 2007. Leptospirosis serosurvey in bovines from Brazilian Pantanal using IGG ELISA with recombinant protein LipL32 and microscopic agglutination test, Brazilian Journal of Microbiology, 38, 674–680

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkinson, L., 1990. SYSTAT: The system for statistics, (SYSTAT, Inc., Evanston, IL)

    Google Scholar 

  • Willink, P.W., Chernoff, B., Alonso, L.E., Montambault, J.R. and Lourival, R. (eds), 2001. A Biological Assessment of the Aquatic Ecosystems of the Pantanal, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brasil, RAP Bulletin of Biological Assessment, 18 (Center for Applied Biodiversity Science CABS, Conservation International, The Field Museum, Museu de Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo, EMBRAPA, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul)

  • Zar, J. H., 1996. Biostatistical analysis, 3rd Edition, (Prentice-Hall, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This project was primarily funded by Earthwatch, IBC (Institute for Biological Conservation), CI-Brasil, Rio Tinto, HSBC, and Merrill Magowan also provided financial aid. The authors thank IAGRO–Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul for their support. Special thanks to Ezidio Araujo (Baiano), Celso Vicente, Maria do Carmo Andrade, Earthwatch volunteers, and York High School from Maine, for all their field assistance and support. We would also like to thank Fazenda Rio Negro staff. We thank two anonymous reviewers and Leslie Harrison for making significant improvements to earlier drafts of this paper.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Wildlife Conservation Society, Brazil. Rua Jardim Botânico 674/sala 210, 22461-000, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

    Tatiana P. Tavares de Freitas, Alexine Keuroghlian, Donald P. Eaton, Flávia Miranda & José Vergílio B. Lima

  2. Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso, Av. Fernando Correa da Costa, s/n, 78060-900, Cuiaba, MT, Brazil

    Tatiana P. Tavares de Freitas, Luciano Nakazato & Valéria Dutra

  3. Universidade para o Desenvolvimento do Estado e da Região do Pantanal (UNIDERP), R. Ceará, 333, 79003-010, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil

    Alexine Keuroghlian

  4. Agência Estadual de Defesa Sanitária Animal e Vegetal de Mato Grosso do Sul (IAGRO), Av. Senador Filinto Muller, 1146, 79074-902, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil

    Emanuel Barbosa de Freitas, Aline Figueiredo, Jacqueline M. de Oliveira, Rita Cassia S. Paes, Leticia A. R. Carneiro Monteiro & Aparecida A. da C. Neto

  5. Departamento de Medicina Veterinaria Preventiva, Universidade Estadual de Londrina (UEL), CX. Postal 6001, 86051-990, Londrina, PR, Brazil

    Julio Cesar de Freitas

Authors
  1. Tatiana P. Tavares de Freitas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Alexine Keuroghlian
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Donald P. Eaton
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Emanuel Barbosa de Freitas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Aline Figueiredo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Luciano Nakazato
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Jacqueline M. de Oliveira
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Flávia Miranda
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Rita Cassia S. Paes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Leticia A. R. Carneiro Monteiro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. José Vergílio B. Lima
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Aparecida A. da C. Neto
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. Valéria Dutra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. Julio Cesar de Freitas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tatiana P. Tavares de Freitas.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

de Freitas, T.P.T., Keuroghlian, A., Eaton, D.P. et al. Prevalence of Leptospira interrogans antibodies in free-ranging Tayassu pecari of the Southern Pantanal, Brazil, an ecosystem where wildlife and cattle interact. Trop Anim Health Prod 42, 1695–1703 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-010-9622-2

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-010-9622-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation