Renata Ferreira dos Santos

A importância de Leptospira interrogans sorovariedades Icterohaemorrhagiae e Canicola na zona litorânea e nos campos sulinos do Rio Grande do Sul

This study aimed to describe the occurrence of Leptospira interrogans serovars Icterohaemorrhagiae and Canicola, in coastal zone and in southern grasslands of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. In each one of the four analyzed farms blood samples were collected from free-living wild animals, domestic animals and humans to perform serological testing for leptospirosis. The presence of antibodies was verified by microscopic agglutination test (MAT). The criterion adopted to consider a serum as agglutination reactant was at least 50% of leptospira for a microscopic field of 100x. From 17 blood samples collected at Chui, five (29.41%) were positive, three (60.00%) for serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae and two (40.00%) for Canicola. From 21 samples collected in the County of Santana da Boa Vista, six (28.57%) were positive, four (66.67%) for serovar Canicola and two (33.33%) for serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae. From 32 samples collected at Alegrete, 10 (31.25%) were positive, seven (70.00%) for serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae and three (30.00%) foro serovar Canicola. From 17 blood samples collected in Cruz Alta, three (17.64%) were positive, two (66.67%) for serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae and one (33.33%) for Canicola. It is necessary to improve sanitary practices on farms in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in order to achieve success in leptospirosis control programs.

Evaluation of dot-blot test for serological diagnosis of bovine brucellosis

The objective of this study was to standardize and validate the dot-blot test for the serological diagnosis of bovine brucellosis, compare the results with those found in the 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) and complement fixation test (CF), and estimate the relative sensitivity and specificity of the dot-blot compared to these tests. Fifty bovine blood serum samples were used for the test standardization, and 1315 samples were used for evaluation and comparison between the tests; the results were compared using the Kappa indicator. At the end of standardization, it was established as optimal for the antigen obtained from Brucella abortus B19 after passing through a microorganism rupture process, the blood serum samples diluted at 1:100, and the conjugate at 1:30,000. The comparison of the dot-blot results with 2-ME showed Kappa index of 0.9939, sensitivity of 99.48%, and specificity 99.91%, with CF, Kappa index of 0.8226, sensitivity 100% and specificity 95.32%. Using the combination of the test results 2-ME and CF to establish the true condition of the animal, the dot-blot showed relative sensitivity of 100%, and relative specificity of 99.91%. The evaluated test proved to be effective and reliable, besides being easy to handle and interpret the results.

Brucella spp. in equines slaughtered in the south region of Brazil

Bacteria of the genus Brucella are widespread in many countries. These microorganisms can infect humans and many wild and domestic animal species. These bacteria have zoonotic potential, and can cause economic and public health problems since they can be transmitted by direct contact with sick animals, through consumption of contaminated milk, raw meat and its derivatives (Soares et al., 2015). Brucellosis is considered a chronic evolving disease, unusual in horses, predominantly caused by Brucella abortus. However, it is not characterized by reproductive disorders in horses, but primarily by abscess in the cervical region, bursa, tendons, and joints. Transmission is likely to occur via ingestion of contaminated water and pastures, especially in areas endemic for bovine brucellosis (Ribeiro et al., 2008). The slaughterhouse is a strategic point for obtaining information about the animal and animal products, edible or not. This study investigated the presence of anti-Brucella spp. immunoglobulins in the serum samples from horses slaughtered in a slaughterhouse in southern Brazil, to estimate the frequency of Brucella spp. antibodies and determine the spatial distribution of the cases.

Prevalência e fatores de risco para brucelose suína em Mossoró-RN

The study aimed to determine the prevalence of brucellosis and its risk factors in the pig herd of Mossoro-RN. Comprised a cross-sectional quantitative approach and epidemiological study, where 412 blood samples of pigs from major producers in the municipality were collected and inspection of herds with interviews with producers were conducted. Antibodies to Brucella spp. were detected by the rose Bengal test (RBT) and confirmed by the complement fixation test (CFT). The prevalence of brucellosis in pigs was 27.0% in the RBT and 17.5% in the CFT. In 55% of the surveyed properties there was at least one positive animal, and these prevalence ranged from 6.7% to 80.0%. Risk factors that were influencing the occurrence of the disease were the presence of rats in the farms, contact with cattle and the young age of the animals. The study results showed that the causative agent of brucellosis was circulating in pigs in the municipality of Mossoro-RN, with high prevalence in the herd and on the properties, indicating the risk of transmission of this zoonosis to humans.

O VÍRUS PANDEMICO (H1N1): UMA AMEAÇA A SUINOCULTURA

Influenza suina (H1N1) ou Gripe Suina e uma doenca respiratoria aguda altamente contagiosa, causada por um dos diversos virus da influenza suina A. A morbidade tende a ser alta, enquanto a mortalidade baixa. Os suinos sao importantes hospedeiros do virus Influenza H1N1(swine-like Influenza A) e susceptiveis as infeccoes por virus Influenza de origem aviaria e humana. Estes animais possuem importante papel na transmissao viral entre especies e na epidemiologia da influenza humana, pois pode abrigar um virus que sofre recombinacao genetica e por consequencia mutacao que pode ficar ou nao mais virulento. Em 24 de abril de 2009, houve um primeiro alerta da OMS (Organizacao Mundial da Saude) sobre o surgimento desta doenca. O contagio pelo H1N1 causou alarme, pois poderia ser rapido e se tornar incontrolavel, visto que seus sintomas sao muito parecidos com os de uma gripe comum e poderiam ser facilmente confundidos e camuflar uma possivel pandemia. Considerando-se o grande impacto da recente epidemia pelo virus Influenza H1N1, em funcao do seu risco potencial, este artigo pretende esclarecer como reconhecer, diagnosticar e prevenir, de forma a melhor compreender as relacoes entre a exposicao aos suinos e a possivel infeccao.