U.S. Department of Agriculture: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
ORCID IDs
Hannah M. Cranford https://orc.org/0000-0002-9502-2864
A. Springer Browne https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0532-3832
Karen LeCount https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9455-3380
Tammy Anderson https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4458-9059
Tod Stuber https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6097-6388
Marissa Taylor https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7918-7119
Cosme J. Harrison https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6380-2658
Alexandra Medley https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1288-2034
John Rossow https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9471-7536
Nicholas Wiese https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8272-4982
Leah de Wilde https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6084-2475
Michelle Mehalick https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9088-6092
Alan S. McKinley https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2787-9046
Jennifer Valiulis https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6626-6109
Jarlath E. Nally https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9478-1316
Date of this Version
11-1-2021
Citation
Cranford, H.M., A.S. Browne, K. LeCount, T. Anderson, C. Hamond, L. Schlater, T. Stuber, V.J. Burke-France, M. Taylor, C.J. Harrison, K.Y. Matias, A. Medley, J. Rossow, N. Wiese, L. Jankelunas, L. de Wilde, M. Mehalick, G.L. Blanchard, K.R. Garcia, A.S. McKinley, C.D. Lombard, N.F. Angeli, D. Horner, T. Kelley, D.J. Worthington, J. Valiulis, B. Bradford, A. Berentsen, J.S. Salzer, R. Galloway, I.J. Schafer, K. Bisgard, J. Roth, B.R. Ellis, E.M. Ellis, and J.E. Nally. 2021. Mongooses (Urva auropunctata) as reservoir hosts of Leptospira species in the United States Virgin Islands, 2019-2020. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 15(11):e0009859.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009859
Abstract
During 2019–2020, the Virgin Islands Department of Health investigated potential animal reservoirs of Leptospira spp., the bacteria that cause leptospirosis. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated Leptospira spp. exposure and carriage in the small Indian mongoose (Urva auropunctata, syn: Herpestes auropunctatus), an invasive animal species. This study was conducted across the three main islands of the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI), which are St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John. We used the microscopic agglutination test (MAT), fluorescent antibody test (FAT), real-time polymerase chain reaction (lipl32 rt-PCR), and bacterial culture to evaluate serum and kidney specimens and compared the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of these laboratory meth-ods. Mongooses (n = 274) were live-trapped at 31 field sites in ten regions across USVI and humanely euthanized for Leptospira spp. testing. Bacterial isolates were sequenced and evaluated for species and phylogenetic analysis using the ppk gene. Anti-Leptospira spp. antibodies were detected in 34% (87/256) of mongooses. Reactions were observed with the following serogroups: Sejroe, Icterohaemorrhagiae, Pyrogenes, Mini, Cynopteri, Australis, Hebdomadis, Autumnalis, Mankarso, Pomona, and Ballum. Of the kidney specimens exam-ined, 5.8% (16/270) were FAT-positive, 10% (27/274) were culture-positive, and 12.4% (34/ 274) were positive by rt-PCR. Of the Leptospira spp. isolated from mongooses, 25 were L. borgpetersenii, one was L. interrogans, and one was L. kirschneri. Positive predictive values of FAT and rt-PCR testing for predicting successful isolation of Leptospira by culture were 88% and 65%, respectively. The isolation and identification of Leptospira spp. in mongooses highlights the potential role of mongooses as a wildlife reservoir of leptospirosis; mongooses could be a source of Leptospira spp. infections for other wildlife, domestic animals, and humans.
Included in
Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons, Other Environmental Sciences Commons, Other Veterinary Medicine Commons, Population Biology Commons, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons, Veterinary Infectious Diseases Commons, Veterinary Microbiology and Immunobiology Commons, Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Epidemiology, and Public Health Commons, Zoology Commons
Comments
U.S. government work