Production of concentrated, sterile, liquid culture medium, for cultivation of Leptospire strains

• Grant number: 01/13201-7
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Innovative Research in Small Business - PIPE
• Start date: November 01, 2002
• End date: May 31, 2003
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Microbiology
• Principal Investigator: Rui Vadik Abrão
• Grantee: Rui Vadik Abrão
• Company: Bio Pronto Indústria e Comércio de Produtos Biológicos Ltda. - ME
• City: Orlândia

Abstract

Leptospirosis is an urban disease, associated with the presence of rodents, which appears with greater intensity in large centers and mainly in the rainy seasons (Silva, 1994; Ministério da Saúde, 1997). It is an epizootic, which has a variety of serovars associated with some species of animals, as for example, serovar canicola in dogs, serovar pomona in pigs, icterohaemorrhagiae in rodents and wolffi in bovine animals (Baranton et aI., 1995). Considering the importance of leptospirosis in our environment, the present work aims to prove the technical viability of developing a formulated culture medium, containing proteins, vitamins, mineral salts and diluent. It is important to highlight that leptospires do not use sugar as a source of energy, so it is necessary to replace it with another element. The production of a culture medium, for the cultivation of leptospire strains, in ready-to-use, concentrated, sterile, liquid form, will be standardized and assessed for sterility and fertility against a battery of 22 reference strains of leptospirosis, approved by the World Health Organization (WHO). The presentation of the product in concentrated and sterile form will have all the indispensable nutrients for the cultivation of the bacteria, needing only to be diluted in sterile distilled water (Ph 7,3-7,4). The largest users of this culture medium are scientific research laboratories belonging to public institutions, clinical analysis and research laboratories established in universities, and productive industries which produce vaccines. The intention is also to export the product to businesses, research centers and universities in several countries. (AU)