Abstract
Leptospirosis is an important zoonotic disease. Subclinically infected cats can act as reservoirs shedding leptospires into the environment. This study aimed to determine Leptospira serogroups, seroprevalence, prevalence of urinary shedding and risk factors for infection in Hong Kong cats.
Microagglutination testing (MAT) of 22 serogroups was performed on 739 serum samples from free-roaming community (n = 392) and privately-owned (n = 347) cats using a cut-off of 1:100. Urine from 269 community cats underwent LipL32 quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for pathogenic leptospire DNA. Risk factors were analysed by logistic regression.
Seroprevalence was 9.34% (69/739) and 4.46% (12/269) of cats were shedding leptospires in urine (median load 10.41 copies/ng DNA, range 0.07–3344). Sixteen serogroups were detected at titres up to 1:6400, most frequently Javanica (4.33%), Djasiman (2.30%) and Australis (1.35%). Seroprevalence was higher in community (13.20%) than owned (4.90%) cats (OR 2.97 (95% CI 1.68–5.24), P <0.001). Community cats were more frequently exposed to serogroup Javanica (7.65%) than privately-owned cats (0.58%) (P < 0.001). Among 233 community cats with paired samples, 1 in 3 seropositive cats had leptospiruria. After adjusting for provenance, none of breed, sex, neuter status, age, district rodent infestation levels, alanine transaminase or creatinine values were associated with seropositivity.
Cats in Hong Kong are exposed to a wide range of Leptospira serogroups. Greater exposure in community cats compared with privately-owned cats likely reflects greater interaction with reservoir species or their urine. Although urinary Leptospira loads in cats were low, gloves should be worn when handling urine to reduce zoonotic risk.
© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
Microagglutination testing (MAT) of 22 serogroups was performed on 739 serum samples from free-roaming community (n = 392) and privately-owned (n = 347) cats using a cut-off of 1:100. Urine from 269 community cats underwent LipL32 quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for pathogenic leptospire DNA. Risk factors were analysed by logistic regression.
Seroprevalence was 9.34% (69/739) and 4.46% (12/269) of cats were shedding leptospires in urine (median load 10.41 copies/ng DNA, range 0.07–3344). Sixteen serogroups were detected at titres up to 1:6400, most frequently Javanica (4.33%), Djasiman (2.30%) and Australis (1.35%). Seroprevalence was higher in community (13.20%) than owned (4.90%) cats (OR 2.97 (95% CI 1.68–5.24), P <0.001). Community cats were more frequently exposed to serogroup Javanica (7.65%) than privately-owned cats (0.58%) (P < 0.001). Among 233 community cats with paired samples, 1 in 3 seropositive cats had leptospiruria. After adjusting for provenance, none of breed, sex, neuter status, age, district rodent infestation levels, alanine transaminase or creatinine values were associated with seropositivity.
Cats in Hong Kong are exposed to a wide range of Leptospira serogroups. Greater exposure in community cats compared with privately-owned cats likely reflects greater interaction with reservoir species or their urine. Although urinary Leptospira loads in cats were low, gloves should be worn when handling urine to reduce zoonotic risk.
© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine |
| Pages | 795 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 2024 |
| Event | 33rd European Congress of Veterinary Internal Medicine for Companion Animals (ECVIM-CA 2023) - Centre de Convencions Internacional de Barcelona (CCIB), Barcelon, Spain Duration: 21 Sept 2023 → 23 Sept 2023 https://www.ecvimcongress.org/ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jvim.16930 |
Publication series
| Name | Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Wiley Periodicals LLC |
| Number | 1 |
| Volume | 38 |
| ISSN (Print) | 0891-6640 |
| ISSN (Electronic) | 1939-1676 |
Conference
| Conference | 33rd European Congress of Veterinary Internal Medicine for Companion Animals (ECVIM-CA 2023) |
|---|---|
| Abbreviated title | ECVIM-CA Congress 2023 |
| Country/Territory | Spain |
| City | Barcelon |
| Period | 21/09/23 → 23/09/23 |
| Internet address |