Evaluation of two commercially available immunological kits for the diagnosis of Helicobacter spp. in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus).

Helicobacter pylori is considered to be responsible for the most common gastric infections in humans worldwide. In animals, other Helicobacter species are linked to gastritis with and without the presence of ulcers in their respective hosts. Moreover, gastric ulcers have been reported for decades in wild and captive dolphins. Clinical signs include lack of appetite, anorexia, abdominal tenderness, depression, and occasional unresponsiveness. In this study, serum and stool of nine bottlenose dolphins from Loro Parque collection Tenerife, Spain were examined for the presence of Helicobacter spp. The aim of our study was to evaluate the use of two commercially available kits for the detection of H. pylori in humans: a stool antigen immunoassay (Letitest H. pylori CARD) and a Western blot assay (EUROLINE-WB H. pylori) that were adapted to identify specific Helicobacter spp. antibodies in the tested Loro Parque bottlenose dolphin collection. The utility of these diagnostic kits for their application in dolphins is demonstrated, and their use in the future for the diagnosis of Helicobacter spp. in both wild and captive dolphins is proposed in this study.

Development of an indirect immunofluorescence technique for the evaluation of generated antibody titers against Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae in captive bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus).

Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae is the causative agent of erysipelas, a disease of many mammalian and avian species, mainly swine and turkeys. In cetaceans, erysipelas is considered to be the most common infection in juvenile individuals, which have not been vaccinated. Moreover, the disease manifest in both forms, the dermatologic and the acute septicemic forms, has been reported in various species of dolphins and whales. It is difficult to diagnose erysipelas by currently available approaches. Moreover, it is mainly based on culture methods and also PCR methods, which are currently being developed. At the present stage, prophylactic approaches are based on antibiotic therapy and vaccination mostly with porcine erysipelas vaccines. In the present study, an Indirect Immuno Fluorescence method for the detection of dolphin antibodies levels against E. rhusiopathiae was developed and applied in two different groups of captive bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) from Loro Parque (Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain) and L'Oceanogràfic de Valencia (Valencia, Spain) in order to check the tittering levels of antibodies after application of porcine erysipelas vaccines in the studied dolphins.