MARSH DEER (Blastocerus dichotomus) AS A NEW HOST FOR Leptospira borgpetersenii IN ARGENTINA EL CIERVO DE LOS PANTANOS Blastocerus dichotomus) COMO UN NUEVO HOSPEDADOR DE Leptospira borgpetersenii EN ARGENTINA

MARÍA MARCELA OROZCO; HERNÁN D. ARGIBAY; LEONARDO MINATEL; GEORGINA SIGNORELLI NUÑEZ ; DIANA ARNICA; PAULA BLANCO; IARA FIGINI; KARINA CAIMI

Mastozoologia Neotropical

SAREM Sociedad Argentina para el Estudio de los Mamiferos

Lugar: CABA; Año: 2024 vol. 31

Leptospirosis is a worldwide re-emerging zoonosis caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira.All mammals are potentially susceptible to pathogenic Leptospira, while certain species can act as reservoirs of the bacterium, whose main route of transmission is water. The marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) is a wetland-dependent native cervid distributed in the Paraná-Paraguay River and inuence areas. During the last decades, its populations have undergone mortality episodes of multifactorial origin. Since wetlands constitute favorable scenarios for the transmission of Leptospira, we investigated the occurrence of this agent in 12 marsh deer from the subpopulation of the Paraná Delta in Argentina, categorized as “Endangered”. DNA was extracted from urine and/or kidney samples, and characterization was performed at the species level byPCR amplication of the 16S rRNA gene. An aliquot of urine and serial dilutions of kidney macerates were seeded in a semisolid EMJH medium spiked with 5-Flurouracil, and isolation was achieved in a kidney sample. Leptospira borgpetersenii was detected in two samples (one from urine and one from kidney), constituting the first report in marsh deer. Our findings add a new species as the host of L. borgpetersenii, whose circulation in wildlife has been little studied in the region. Further studies are needed to determine the transmission patterns of this bacterium in wildlife, evaluate its pathogenicity in marsh deer and other wild species, and explore the existence of reservoirs in natural areas