RESUMO
Objective: This short study describes the occurrence of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in two major wet markets in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. Materials and Methods: 30 rodents (20 rats and 10 shrews) were caught in 2 wet markets, and a postmortem was performed to extract both kidneys. Molecular diagnosis via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was conducted to detect leptospiral DNA using universal and pathogenic Leptospira primers, respectively. Results: The results showed that 20/28 (72%) rat samples were detected positive for Leptospira spp, and all shrews were negative. Further sequencing analysis identified L. interrogans and L. borgpetersenii as the most frequently Leptospirosis species from kidney samples. Conclusions: The presented study here sheds light on the presence of pathogenic leptospires harboring the rat population in both wet markets in Kelantan, which presents a great public health risk to wet market workers and visitors.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: This case report highlights the first detection of Trypanosoma lewisi, a blood protozoan parasite found in an urban rat in Kota Bharu, Kelantan. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Rat trapping was carried out within the Kota Bharu vicinity near a local wet market. A total of 38 rats were captured and subjected to peripheral blood smearing using Giemsa stain. Positive rats were sent for histopathological analysis for the evaluation of the organ samples. RESULTS: The presence of trypanosomes was found in one sample from a blood smear. This was connected to a histological lesion on kidney tissues, which revealed a high concentration of trypanosomes. Additionally, the positive sample was confirmed as T. lewisi based on molecular diagnosis via polymerase chain reaction and subsequent sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. CONCLUSIONS: This finding serves as a baseline for further surveillance on T. lewisi population among urban rats in Kelantan and possible zoonotic transmission to humans.
