Faculty of Veterinary Medicine University of Zagreb
Abstract
In the year 2000, three hundred and eighty-one animals werw caught in 11 locations in the pedunculate oak forests extending across the wider region of the Sava River valley, an area known as an old natural focus of leptospires. Two hundred and twenty-seven animals were investigated for leptospiral carriership, 381 were tested for the existence of specific antibodies to leptospira. Through cultivation of kidney sections in the Korthof’s nutrient medium, 17 strains of leptospira were isolated from 3 species of myomorphous mammals, of which in the house mouse (Mus musculus) the serovar sejroe in 10 animals (71.4%), in the black-striped field mouse (Apodemus agrarius) the serovar pomona in 4 animals (5.4%) and in the yellownecked field mouse (Apodemus flavicollis) the serovars australis, pomona and one unindentified isolate in 3 animals (4.5%), representing a total of 7.5% of animals. Using the microscopic agglutination test in 47 animals (12.3%), antibodies to leptospira were found for 8 serovars, for the most part the serovar pomona, then (in decreasing order) for the serovars saxkoebing australis, and hardjo. The percentage of serologically positive animals ranged from 34.4% in the house mouse, 13,9% in the black-striped field mouse, 10.8% in the yellow-necked fieldmouse, 9.4% in the bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus), to 6.5% in the long-tailed field mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus). The research results suggest that pedunculate oak forests can be considered as an integral part of a vast natural focus of leptospirosis. The specificity and role of this biotope in maintaining leptospira should be investigated to a greater extent in the future.U šumama hrasta lužnjaka, na 11 lokaliteta koji se prostiru u širem području rijeke Save, poznatom kao staro prirodno žarište leptospiroza, tijekom 2000. godine ulovljeno je 381 životinja. Na kliconoštvo leptospira pretraženo je 227 životinja i 381 životinja na prisutnost specifičnih protutijela za leptospire. Kultivacijom komadića bubrega u Korthof-ovom hranilištu, izdvojeno je 17 sojeva leptospira, u 3 vrste mišolikih sisavaca, od čega u kućnog miša (Mus musculus) serološka varijanta sejroe u 10 ili 71,4% životinja, u poljskog miša (Apodemus agrarius) serološka varijanta pomona u 4 ili 5,4% i žutogrlog miša (Apodemus flavicollis) serološka varijanta australis, serološka varijanta pomona i jedan nedeterminirani izolat u tri ili 4,5% životinja, što predstavlja ukupno 7,5% životinja. Reakcijom mikroskopske aglutinacije u 47 ili 12,3% životinja ustanovljena su protutijela za 8 seroloških varijanti leptospira, od čega najviše za serološku varijantu pomona, a zatim redom serološku varijantu saxkoebing, australis i hardjo. Postotak serološki pozitivnih životinja kretao se od 34,4% u kućnog miša, 13,9% u poljskog miša, 10,8% žutogrlog miša, 9,4% u riđe voluharice (Clethrionomys glareolus) do 6,5% u šumskog miša (Apodemus sylvaticus). Rezultati istraživanja upućuju na zaključak da šume hrasta lužnjaka možemo smatrati sastavnim dijelom velikog prirodnog žarišta leptospiroze. Specifičnosti i ulogu ovog biotopa u održanju leptospira trebalo bi u budućnosti opsežnije istražiti
