title: Leptospira in breast tissue and milk of urban Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus).
abstract: Leptospirosis is a zoonosis caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira. The disease is globally distributed and a major public health concern. The Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) is the main reservoir of the pathogen in urban slums of developing and developed countries. The potential routes of intra-specific leptospire transmission in rats are largely unknown. Herein, we identified pathogenic Leptospira spp. in breast tissue and milk of naturally infected rats. We examined kidney, breast tissue and milk from 24 lactating rats for the presence of leptospires using immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and scanning electronic microscopy. All 24 rats had evidence for Leptospira in the kidneys, indicating chronic carriage. The majority of kidney-positive rats had detectable leptospires in milk (18, 75%) and breast tissue (16, 67%), as evidenced by immunofluorescence assay and immunohistochemistry. Four (17%) milk samples and two (8%) breast tissue samples were positive by quantitative real-time PCR. Scanning electron microscopy confirmed the presence of leptospires in breast tissue. No major pathological changes in breast tissue were found. This study, for the first time, identified leptospires in the milk and breast tissue of wild Norway rats, suggesting the possibility of milk-borne transmission of leptospirosis to neonates.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: DE Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: C P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Figueira
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Disease,Yale School of Public Health,New Haven,CT,USA.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Pertile
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: G G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Pedra
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Gusmão
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Disease,Yale School of Public Health,New Haven,CT,USA.
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Wunder
authors.affiliation: Centro de Controle de Zoonoses,Secretaria Municipal de Saúde,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: E A G
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Ramos
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: A I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Disease,Yale School of Public Health,New Haven,CT,USA.
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Childs
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Reis
authors.affiliation: Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz,Fundação Oswaldo Cruz,Ministério da Saúde,Salvador,Brazil.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Costa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique / Q000662:veterinary; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000662:veterinary; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical / Q000662:veterinary*; D007919:Leptospira / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D007922:Leptospirosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008321:Mammary Glands, Animal / Q000382:microbiology*; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000662:veterinary; D008892:Milk / Q000382:microbiology*; D051381:Rats; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D012376:Rodent Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology
keywords: Breastfeeding; Rattus norvegicus; immunofluorescence; immunohistochemistry; scanning electronic microscopy; vertical transmission