Isolation of Leptospira spp from dogs, bovine and swine naturally infected

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Abstract
Leptospira isolation allows definitive diagnosis of the infection. Contamination by microorganisms is one of the inconveniences of the culture. The objective of this study was to describe the isolation of Leptospira from dogs, bovine and swine naturally infected. Urine samples from 14 dogs and three bovines, and kidney, liver, ovary, and uterus body samples from 36 slaughtered sows with unknown health history, were used. The urine and organ samples were cultured in culture medium. Modified Ellinghausen-McCullough-Johnson-Harris medium (EMJH) culture medium was used with addition of 5-fluorouracil, chloramphenicol, vancomycin, nalidixic acid and neomycin. Incubation was performed at 28oC for 24 hours, followed by subculture in modified EMJH without antibiotics. The cultures were assessed weekly for up to eight weeks for the dog and swine samples and for up to 16 weeks for the bovine samples. With this methodology, Leptospira spp could be isolated from 11 dogs, two bovines and liver fragments from two sows.