LEPTOSPIRA ANTIBOBY DETECTION IN VENEZUELA'S SOW POPULATION

摘要

Swine leptospirosis in Venezuela is more frequent than it has been believed. The economic impact in swineherds comes from abortion, weak pigs, stillbirths and infertility. Leptospira is a motile, aerobic spirochete, Gram negative, often hooked at oneor both ends. It is divided in two groups interrogans and biflexa. Leptospirosis-causing disease in pigs belong to the interrogans group. Epizootiologically, swine leptospirosis is quite complex by the fact that pigs can be infected by anyone of more than 200 pathogenic serovars included in interrogans group. Serological studies have shown that only a reduced number of serovars are present in swine outbreaks, namely: L. pomona, canicola, tarassovi, icterohaemorrhagiae, Copenhageni, hardjo, grippotyphosa, panama, bratislava, xhermani, pyrogenes, australis, and wolfi. Management, environmental factors and presence of other animal species presents in the area influence permanence and variability in a herd. Previous work by scientists at the Venezuelan Institute for Veterinary Research (FONAIAP-CENIAP) found antibodies against Leptospirosis, Pseudorrabia and Parvovirosis in swine sera. Although prevalence of Leptospirosis in Venezuela is high, antibodies have not been classified. Today in Venezuela different serovars are used in commercial swine vaccines, including L. canicola, grippotyphosa, hardjo, pomona, ballum and icterohaemorrhagiae. This study identified the specific serovars of Leptospira present in Venezuela's sow population.