Prevalence and molecular characterization of Leptospira from free-ranging wild animais

• Grant number: 24/01396-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: June 01, 2024
• End date: May 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Felipe Fornazari
• Grantee: Katia Jaggi
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The objective of the present study is to identify the role of wild animals as carriers of Leptospira spp. Between 200 and 300 free-living wild mammals of various species will be studied, referred to the Center for Medicine and Research of Wild Animals (CEMPAS) at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics (FMVZ), São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu, São Paulo. Blood and urine samples will be collected for serological (Microscopic Agglutination Test) and molecular (Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction - qPCR) diagnosis , respectively. qPCR-positive samples will undergo genotyping using the Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) technique. Positive samples with unsatisfactory quality for genotyping will be subjected to a new qPCR targeting partial gene sequencing of SecY for taxonomic identification of leptospires at the species level. The results of this study will help determine the prevalence and genetic diversity of leptospires in wild animals, contributing with valuable epidemiological data for this highly significant zoonosis in the One Health context.