Detection of Leptospira spp. and Brucella abortus Antibodies in Free-Living Jaguars (Panthera onca) in Two Protected Areas of Northern Pantanal, Brazil

A study detecting antibodies to Leptospira spp. and Brucella abortus in free-living jaguars (Panthera onca) in the Pantanal, Brazil, revealed that 18.2% of the sampled jaguars were seroreactive for Leptospira, with a Brazilian isolate of serovar Canicola identified as the most infective strain. All jaguars tested negative for Brucella abortus antibodies. The research employed autochthonous antigens from Brazil, combined with reference antigens, to diagnose leptospirosis using the Microscopic Agglutination Test (MAT) and the Rose Bengal test for B. abortus. This approach significantly increased the detection of reactive animals, suggesting that incorporating local antigens can alter the epidemiological profile of Leptospira infections in wildlife.

ONUMA, S. S. M., KANTEK, D. L. Z., CRAWSHAW JÚNIOR, P. G., MORATO, R. G., MAY-JÚNIOR, J. A., MORAIS, Z. M. d., FERREIRA NETO, J. S., & AGUIAR, D. M. d. (2015). DETECTION OF Leptospira spp. AND Brucella abortus ANTIBODIES IN FREE-LIVING JAGUARS (Panthera onca) IN TWO PROTECTED AREAS OF NORTHERN PANTANAL, BRAZIL. Revista Do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo, 57(2), 177–180. https://doi.org/10.1590/s0036-46652015000200014