Detecção de Borrelia sp em gambás (Didelphis aurita) Imunossuprimidos com ciclofosfamida

Abstract

The interest in the study of pathologies associated to marsupals is due tue to the variety of peridomicialy ecological niches, easy handling, and adaptation to the captivity conditions. The global of this work was to the detect natural infection by Borrelia sp and other pathogens by means of direct examination of peripheral blood, urine, and macerated kidney from opossuns (Didelphis aurita) immunossupressed by the drug cyclophosphamide. The experiments were conduced in the Laboratório de Doenças Parasitárias do convênio Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA) e a Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Jaineiro (UFRRJ), and in the Instituto de Biologia do Exército (IBEx), form February to September, 1997. It was possible to identify Borrelia sp in the urine of five natural infected opossums, after immunossupression by cyclophosphamide. The captured animals have not presented infestation by thicks or any other ectoparasite and no sign or symptom of the disease was detected. The results of blood were within the normal values for the species. Linfocitary infiltrates in the kidneys of mice inoculated with macerated kidney from positive opossums were detected through histopathological analysis. The presence of Borrelia sp in the penpheral blood of mice suggest that these animals may be employed as experimental models.