Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Sporotrichosis , Public Health Surveillance , Zoonoses , Disease OutbreaksABSTRACT
Em 2011, a partir de rumor da presença de gatos com a zoonose esporotricose, iniciou-se uma investigação epidemiológica no Distrito Administrativo de Itaquera, município de São Paulo, para detecção de possível surto e definição de medidas de controle. Delimitou-se a área geográfica de trabalho para busca ativa de casos em animais e pessoas, coletando-se material para diagnóstico. Animais diagnosticados receberam tratamento e acompanhamento domiciliar periódico. Casos humanos suspeitos foram encaminhados para atendimento médico. Os proprietários foram orientados sobre a doença, a importância da domiciliação, cuidados para a medicação e manejo dos animais. Mutirões de esterilização foram realizados para diminuir a circulação de animais, a dispersão da doença e identificação de suspeitos. Informações para detecção de novos casos foram divulgadas entre médicos e veterinários da rede de saúde. Entre abril de 2011 a dezembro de 2013 foram detectados 114 gatos e um cão positivos e 13 pessoas com lesões sugestivas. Observou-se um decréscimo da incidência de casos humanos e felinos no período. A adesão e o comprometimento dos proprietários com o tratamento, propiciados pelo vínculo de confiança estabelecido com a equipe de Vigilância em Saúde, a esterilização de animais e o manejo adequado dos gatos evitaram o abandono e diminuíram a transmissão. Os resultados indicam que a estratégia adotada foi efetiva para a detecção e controle do surto e recuperação dos animais. A continuidade do monitoramento será fundamental para diagnóstico precoce e redução de casos em humanos e animais...
Subject(s)
Cats , Sporotrichosis , Cats , Disease OutbreaksABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Sporotrichosis is a mycotic infectious disease that is generally acquired by traumatic inoculation of contaminated materials especially from plant debris or through bites and scratches from diseased animals, such as domestic cats. It affects the skin, lymphatic system, and other organs in the warm-blooded host. Etiological agents are embedded in the plant-associated order Ophiostomatales. With essential differences between possible outbreak sources and ecological niche, host-environment interactions are classic determinants of risk factors for disease acquisition. Sporotrichosis outbreaks with zoonotic transmission, such as those that are ongoing in southern and southeastern Brazil, have highlighted the threat of cross-species pathogen transmission. Sporothrix brasiliensis has emerged as a human threat owing to the intimate contact pattern between diseased cats and humans in endemic areas. RESULTS: We describe the recent emergence of feline sporotrichosis in the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil, with an overwhelming occurrence of S. brasiliensis as the etiological agent. A phylogenetic and a haplotype approach were used to investigate the origin of this epidemic and the impact of feline transmission on genetic diversity. During the last 3-year period, 163 cases of feline sporotrichosis were reported in São Paulo with proven S. brasiliensis culture. The haplotype diversity of feline S. brasiliensis isolates revealed the expansion of a clonal population with low genetic diversity. Haplotype analysis confirmed that isolates from São Paulo shared the haplotype originated in the long-lasting outbreak of cat-transmitted sporotrichosis in Rio de Janeiro, which differed from the haplotype circulating in the Rio Grande do Sul epidemic. CONCLUSIONS: The fast spread of sporotrichosis in a short period of time highlights the potential for outbreaks and suggests that the mycosis may affect an urban population with a high concentration of susceptible felines. The feline sporotrichosis epidemic shows no signs of slowing, and this epidemiological pattern may require specific public health strategies to control future outbreaks.
Subject(s)
Cat Diseases/microbiology , Communicable Diseases, Emerging/veterinary , Sporothrix , Sporotrichosis/veterinary , Animals , Brazil/epidemiology , Cat Diseases/epidemiology , Cats , Communicable Diseases, Emerging/epidemiology , Communicable Diseases, Emerging/microbiology , Disease Outbreaks/veterinary , Phylogeny , Sporothrix/genetics , Sporothrix/pathogenicity , Sporotrichosis/epidemiology , Sporotrichosis/microbiologyABSTRACT
The main objective of this study is to standardize an ELISA for the diagnosis of feline sporotrichosis. Sporothrix schenckii is the etiological agent of human and animal sporotrichosis. Cats may act as reservoirs for S. schenckii and can transmit the infection to humans by a bite or scratch. There are few methods for the serological diagnosis of fungal diseases in animals. In this paper, an ELISA test for the diagnosis of cat sporotrichosis is proposed, which detects S. schenckii-specific antibodies in feline sera. Two different kinds of antigens were used: "SsCBF", a specific molecule from S. schenckii that consists of a Con A-binding fraction derived from a peptido-rhamnomannan component of the cell wall, and a S. schenckii crude exoantigen preparation. The ELISA was developed, optimized, and evaluated using sera from 30 cats with proven sporotrichosis (by culture isolation); 22 sera from healthy feral cats from a zoonosis center were used as negative controls. SsCBF showed 90% sensitivity and 96% specificity in ELISA; while crude exoantigens demonstrated 96% sensitivity and 98% specificity. The ELISA assay described here would be a valuable screening tool for the detection of specific S. schenckii antibodies in cats with sporotrichosis. The assay is inexpensive, quick to perform, easy to interpret, and permits the diagnosis of feline sporotrichosis.
Subject(s)
Antigens, Fungal , Cat Diseases/diagnosis , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/veterinary , Sporotrichosis/veterinary , Animals , Antibodies, Fungal/blood , Cats , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/standards , Immunodiffusion/veterinary , Reproducibility of Results , Sensitivity and Specificity , Serologic Tests/standards , Sporothrix/physiology , Sporotrichosis/diagnosisABSTRACT
Blood serum samples were collected from 451 bats captured within the São Paulo city from April 2007 to November 2008, and individually tested by indirect immunofluorescence assay against antigens derived from five Rickettsia species reported to occur in Brazil: the spotted fever group (SFG) species R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali, and the ancestral group species R. bellii. For this purpose, an anti-bat immunoglobulin G was produced and used in the present study. Overall, 8.6% (39/451), 9.5% (34/358), 7.8% (28/358), 1.1% (4/358), and 0% (0/358) serum samples were reactive to R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali, and R. bellii, respectively. Endpoint titers of reactive sera ranged from 64 to 256. From 20 bat species of 3 different families (Molossidae, Vespertilionidae, and Phyllostomidae), 46 animals were shown to be reactive to at least one rickettsial antigen. Seropositivity per bat species ranged from 0% to 33.3%. Most of the serologically positive sera reacted with two or more rickettsial antigens. Seropositivity for SFG rickettsial antigens in the absence of reactivity against R. bellii (ancestral group species) suggests that bats from São Paulo city can be infected by SFG rickettsiae. The possible role of soft ticks in serving as vectors of SFG rickettsiae to bats within the São Paulo city, associated to its public health risks, is discussed.
Subject(s)
Animals , Chiroptera , Serology , Rickettsia InfectionsABSTRACT
Blood serum samples were collected from 451 bats captured within the São Paulo city from April 2007 to November 2008, and individually tested by indirect immunofluorescence assay against antigens derived from five Rickettsia species reported to occur in Brazil: the spotted fever group (SFG) species R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali, and the ancestral group species R. bellii. For this purpose, an anti-bat immunoglobulin G was produced and used in the present study. Overall, 8.6% (39/451), 9.5% (34/358), 7.8% (28/358), 1.1% (4/358), and 0% (0/358) serum samples were reactive to R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali, and R. bellii, respectively. Endpoint titers of reactive sera ranged from 64 to 256. From 20 bat species of 3 different families (Molossidae, Vespertilionidae, and Phyllostomidae), 46 animals were shown to be reactive to at least one rickettsial antigen. Seropositivity per bat species ranged from 0% to 33.3%. Most of the serologically positive sera reacted with two or more rickettsial antigens. Seropositivity for SFG rickettsial antigens in the absence of reactivity against R. bellii (ancestral group species) suggests that bats from São Paulo city can be infected by SFG rickettsiae. The possible role of soft ticks in serving as vectors of SFG rickettsiae to bats within the São Paulo city, associated to its public health risks, is discussed.
