title: A serologic assessment of exposure to viral pathogens and Leptospira in an urban raccoon (Procyon lotor) population inhabiting a large zoological park.
abstract: In urban environments, raccoons (Procyon lotor) may act as reservoirs for an array of pathogenic organisms, presenting spillover risks for human, domestic animal, and captive (zoo) animal populations. Over 5 yr, 159 raccoons from a high-density raccoon population in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), were surveyed for exposure to canine distemper virus (CDV), canine adenovirus 1 (CAV-1); feline parvovirus (FPV; =feline panleukopenia), and several serovars of Leptospira interrogans. Exposure to each of the viruses and two Leptospira serovars (grippotyphosa and icterohemorrhagiae) was detected (prevalence of CDV = 54.1%; FPV = 49.7%; CAV-1 = 6.9%; L. interrogans icterohemorrhagiae = 8.9%; L. interrogans grippotyphosa = 6.3%). Eighty percent of raccoons showed evidence of exposure to at least one of the five primary pathogens, and 39% were positive for multiple species. Among the viruses, there was a significant co-occurrence of CDV and CAV-1. Longitudinal data on a subset of animals revealed that among individuals who were diagnosed as seropositive on first capture, 33-100% became seronegative for the pathogen of interest when reexamined at a later date. Thus, free-ranging urban raccoons have been exposed to multiple infectious agents, some of which may pose risks to humans and to nonvaccinated domestic and captive animal populations.
authors.affiliation: Saint Louis Zoo, Missouri 63110, USA.
authors.forename: Randall E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Junge
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bauman
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: King
authors.forename: Matthew E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Gompper
mesh_terms: D000256:Adenoviridae / Q000276:immunology; D000257:Adenoviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D000818:Animals; D000836:Animals, Zoo; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary / Q000821:virology; D004216:Distemper / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004217:Distemper Virus, Canine / Q000276:immunology; D028301:Feline Panleukopenia Virus / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D007919:Leptospira / Q000276:immunology; D007922:Leptospirosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D010322:Parvoviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D011821:Raccoons / Q000821:virology*; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000914:Antibodies, Viral