Detection of human Mastadenovirus C in wild guinea pigs (Cavia aperea aperea) feces.

The Adenoviridae family is composed by a high diversity of viruses that are extremely resistant in environment and are frequently excreted in animal reservoir feces for long periods. The knowledge of adenovirus (AdV) diversity among wild species may be important for the understanding of the epidemiology of putative emerging diseases. Cavia aperea aperea, commonly known as wild guinea pigs, wild cavies, or preas, are small herbivorous rodents widely distributed throughout South America and classified in Caviidae family, as well as domestic guinea pigs and capybaras. In order to investigate their potential role as reservoir of zoonotic agents, the present study aimed to verify the presence of AdV in fecal samples of 14 preas from Northeast Brazil. When submitted to nested PCR, two out of 14 samples (14.28%) were positive for AdV and classified as human Mastadenovirus C (HAdV-C) using DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. Wild guinea pigs are synanthropic rodents that live in close contact with humans. The investigation of viral agents in rodents is important due to their potential role as reservoirs of human and animal pathogens. Moreover, the present work presents the first known evidence of HAdV in wild guinea pig stool samples, which may represent both the impact of anthropogenic pollution to wild animals and an important knowledge in terms of human health.

Intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin test in the diagnosis of caprine tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis remains one of the most important infectious diseases with well-known zoonotic nature that affect humans, wildlife, and domestic animals, including goats. Nonetheless, no intradermal tuberculin test has been standardized for caprine diagnosis of tuberculosis. The present study investigated the intradermal comparative cervical tuberculin test (ICCTT) in the diagnosis of tuberculosis among 60 goats from farms with history of tuberculosis. The cutoff applied to goats was based on a study where goats had been experimentally infected with Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium avium. Clinical examination, bacteriological culture, and histopathological staining were assessed to the diagnosis. Isolates compatible with mycobacteria were subjected for molecular diagnosis based on gyrB-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis and PCR restriction-enzyme analysis (PRA) of hsp65 gene by BstEII and HaeIII, namely PRA-hsp65 assay. From all goats, 60% (n = 36/60), 3.3% (n = 2/60), and 36.7% (n = 22/60) showed positive, inconclusive, and negative reactions, respectively. Out of 36 goats with ICCTT positive, 75% (n = 27/36) had isolation of mycobacteria and were detected M. bovis by gyrB-RFLP. Molecular diagnosis and histopathological findings compatible with tuberculosis showed 86.1% (n = 31/36) concordance with the ICCTT. When compared ICCTT with M. bovis isolation, gyrB-RFLP, and histopathology, the better arithmetic means of sensitivity and specificity were 2.5 mm for ICCTT compared with M. bovis isolation and gyrB-RFLP, and 4.55 mm when compared with histopathology. Both receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves presented statistical significance (P < 0.001). The identification of other mycobacteria, e.g., M. kansasii, M. flavescens, M. avium, M. florentinum, M. lentiflavum, M. simiae, and Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis, not influenced positive results in ICCTT. The concordance between bacteriological, histopathological, and molecular identification with ICCTT findings indicate that the tuberculin test may be used as a valuable tool for diagnosis of caprine tuberculosis and reinforce the importance of association of methods to diagnostic of the disease from animal origin.

Serological evidence and risk factors associated with Caprine herpesvirus 1 in dairy goat flocks in a semiarid region of northeastern Brazil.

A cross-sectional study was carried out to determine the flock-level seroprevalence of Caprine herpesvirus 1 (CpHV-1) and Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) and 2 (BoHV-2) and risk factors associated with CpHV-1 in dairy goat flocks from a semiarid region of northeastern Brazil. A total of 1,034 serum samples from 110 flocks were collected from March 2009 through March 2010. A structured questionnaire focusing on variables related to risk factors for CpHV-1 infection was given to each farmer at the time of blood collection. Antibodies against CpHV-1, BoHV-1, and BoHV-2 were detected by neutralization tests. The flock-level prevalences of CpHV-1, BoHV-1, and BoHV-2 were 89.1% (98/110; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 81.7-94.2), 80% (88/110; 95% CI: 71.3-87), and 4.5% (5/110; 95% CI: 1.5-10.3), respectively. Frequencies of seropositive animals were 36.6% (379/1,034), 25.8% (267/1,034), and 0.6% (6/1,034) for CpHV-1, BoHV-1, and BoHV-2, respectively. The use of natural mating was identified as a risk factor associated with CpHV-1 flock-level prevalence (P = 0.001). It is suggested that adoption of veterinary services and active surveillance of the at-risk flocks in the study region should be initiated to reduce the prevalence of herpesvirus infections.