title: Prevalence of Leptospira antibodies in wild boars (Sus scrofa) from Northern Portugal: risk factor analysis.
abstract: Leptospirosis is a zoonosis of worldwide distribution, caused by infection with pathogenic spirochaetes of the genus Leptospira. The wild boar (Sus scrofa), an important hunting species in Europe, seems to play a significant role in the epidemiological cycle of leptospirosis. A total of 101 serum samples from wild boar hunted in Northern Portugal were analysed for leptospiral antibodies detection by microscopic agglutination test. Sera were collected during hunting seasons (2011-2013) and tested with 17 different pathogenic serovars of Leptospira. Antibodies against nine serovars were detected in 66 (65·4%) of these sera. Serovars Tarassovi and Altodouro exhibited the highest seroreactivity rates (23·8% and 16·8%, respectively), followed by Autumnalis (7·9%) and Bratislava (6·9%). Age and district of origin were found to be risk factors for the presence of leptospiral antibodies in contrast to gender. From a One Health perspective, this study revealed that wild boar should be considered as a potential source of leptospirosis dissemination for humans and animal species (domestic and wild) in shared environments, particularly in the Trás-os-Montes region.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Applied Ecology,University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Vale-Gonçalves
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Applied Ecology,University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Cabral
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Sciences,University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Faria
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Sciences,University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nunes-Pereira
authors.affiliation: Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environment and Biological Sciences (CITAB),University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: A S
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7339-1036
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Faria
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Sciences,University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Veloso
authors.affiliation: Group of Leptospirosis and Lyme Borreliosis,Unit of Medical Microbiology,Institute of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (IHMT), University Nova of Lisboa (UNL),Centre for Microbial Resources (CREM),Faculty of Science and Technology (FCT),Lisboa,Portugal.
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Vieira
authors.affiliation: Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environment and Biological Sciences (CITAB),University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD),Vila Real,Portugal.
authors.forename: Md N
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0009-9093
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Paiva-Cardoso
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007919:Leptospira / Q000276:immunology*; D007922:Leptospirosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D011174:Portugal / Q000453:epidemiology; D012307:Risk Factors; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D034421:Sus scrofa; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial
keywords: Altodouro; Leptospira; Northern Portugal; leptospirosis; serology; wild boar