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Immuno-fluorescence Assay of Leptospiral Surface-exposed Proteins
Published on: July 1, 2011
Lai-like leptospira from the Andaman Islands
S C Sehgal1, P Vijayachari, L D Smythe
1Regional Medical Research Centre (ICMR), Port Blair, Australia.
Background & Objectives:
Leptospirosis has been an important public health problem in the Andaman Islands since 1988. As information about the exact etiological agent is not available, the present study was undertaken to isolate and identify Leptospira from human patients.
Methods:
An isolate coded AF61 was recovered from the blood of a patient clinically suspected to have leptospirosis, with fever, headache and body aches as the main symptoms. The isolation was done using Ellinghausen-McCullough-Johnson-Harris (EMJH) medium following standard procedure. The isolate was identified using microscopic agglutination test (MAT) with 'groupsera', cross agglutination absorption test (CAAT) and monoclonal antibodies.
Results:
Agglutination tests with rabbit antisera revealed that the isolate belonged to the serogroup icterohaemorrhagiae. The CAAT results showed that it was closely related to the serovar lai. Analysis of AF61 with monoclonal antibodies confirms our observation with CAAT that it is closely related to the reference strain Lai serovar lai.
Interpretation & Conclusions:
Serovar lai, has been associated with pulmonary haemorrhage in China and Korea. However, the strain AF61 was not isolated from a patient with pulmonary symptoms. Further studies are needed to understand the possible relationship between serovars and clinical patterns and the distribution of serovar lai and lai-like strains in Asia.
Insights
Researchers identified Leptospira serovar lai from a patient in the Andaman Islands. This finding is crucial for understanding leptospirosis transmission and clinical patterns in the region.
Area of Science:
- Medical Microbiology
- Infectious Diseases
- Public Health
Background:
- Leptospirosis poses a significant public health challenge in the Andaman Islands.
- Previous etiological data for local leptospirosis cases were limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To isolate and identify the causative agent of leptospirosis in human patients from the Andaman Islands.
Main Methods:
- Leptospira isolate AF61 was obtained from patient blood using Ellinghausen-McCullough-Johnson-Harris (EMJH) medium.
- Identification involved microscopic agglutination test (MAT), cross agglutination absorption test (CAAT), and monoclonal antibody analysis.
Main Results:
- The isolate AF61 was confirmed to belong to the *Leptospira* serogroup icterohaemorrhagiae.
- Cross-agglutination absorption tests and monoclonal antibody analysis indicated a close relationship to serovar lai.
Conclusions:
- The identified strain AF61 is closely related to *Leptospira* serovar lai, previously linked to pulmonary hemorrhage.
- The absence of pulmonary symptoms in the patient with strain AF61 suggests potential variations in clinical presentation.
- Further research is necessary to explore the link between serovars and clinical manifestations, and the prevalence of lai and lai-like strains in Asia.
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