2010 Volume 63 Issue 9 Pages 707-710
In the present study, serum samples were collected from feral raccoons (n ＝186) captured in the southern part of Osaka Prefecture (A) and the eastern part of Hyogo Prefecture (B), as well as from pet dogs (n＝52) in the same regions. Anti-Leptospira interrogans antibodies were evaluated with a microscopic agglutination test (MAT), using five major L. interrogans serovars as antigens. In both regions, the most frequently detected serovar was hebdomadis (A : 31.5% and B : 51.5%) in raccoons, but these serovars were not detected from the pet dogs. L. interrogans-specific PCR analysis revealed that eight out of 66 (12.1%) raccoons were infected with the pathogen. These observations revealed that a high percentage of feral raccoons are infected with Leptospira interrogans, but that transmission may not occur between the raccoons and dogs.
