The isolation of Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona and related serological findings associated with a mixed farming unit in the Transvaal

Abstract

This is the first known isolation in the Republic of South Africa (RSA) of the serovar pomona from the organs of porcine foetuses as well as from the renal lymphnodes of slaughter pigs showing chronic nephritis. In addition, the serovar pomona was isolated from the kidneys of 87,5 % of the slaughter pigs examined. The success of these isolations was attributed in part to the refining of 2 existing isolation techniques which complement each other. Using the microscopic agglutination test, serum samples taken from the same farming unit showed evidence of antibodies to the serovar pomona in 89 out of the 170 bovines (52 %), 9 out of the 52 porcines (17 %), 2 of the 2 canines (100 %), 5 out of the 13 equines (38 %) and 2 out of the 152 ovines (1 %) that were tested. As far as is known, serological evidence of the serovar pomona in porcines, ovines, equines and canines has never previously been published in the RSA.