Antibacterial activity of medicinal plants against Leptospira spp: a literature review / Actividad antibacteriana de plantas medicinales contra Leptospiraspp: una revisión de la literatura

Leptospirosis is a zoonosis caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira that affects animals and humans. This disease is usually treated empirically due to its prevalence in precarious areas without basic sanitation. The use of medicinal plants in less industrializedsocieties has been one of the main therapeutic resources available. Considering the need to use these natural resources to combat leptospirosis in areas of socioeconomic vulnerability, this study aimed to review the literature on the use of plants with medicinal potential in the treatment of leptospirosis. The results showed that even though leptospirosis is a common disease in communities lacking basic sanitation and economic development, the number of studies on the use of plants with medicinal potential is scarce. Most of these studies come from India, and all plants investigated between 2012 and 2020 had antileptospiral action.

La leptospirosis es una zoonosis causada por bacterias del género Leptospira que afecta a animales y humanos. Esta enfermedad suele ser tratada empíricamente debido a su prevalencia en zonas precarias sin saneamiento básico. El uso de plantas medicinales en las sociedades menos industrializadas ha sido uno de los principales recursos terapéuticos disponibles. Considerando la necesidad de utilizar estos recursos naturales para combatir la leptospirosis en áreas de vulnerabilidad socioeconómica, este estudio tuvo como objetivo revisar la literatura sobre el uso de plantas con potencial medicinal en el tratamiento de la leptospirosis. Los resultados mostraron que a pesar de que la leptospirosis es una enfermedad común en comunidades que carecen de saneamiento básico y desarrollo económico, el número de estudios sobre el uso de plantas con potencial medicinal es escaso. La mayoría de estos estudios provienen de India, y todas las plantas investigadas entre 2012 y 2020 tuvieron acción antileptospirales.

Interspecies transmission of Edwardsiella ictaluri in Brazilian catfish (Pseudoplatystoma corruscans) from exotic invasive fish species.

Infections caused by Edwardsiella ictaluri are one of the biggest problems in the catfish industry in North America and have been reported in fishes around the world. E. ictaluri was detected in juvenile pintado Pseudoplatystoma corruscans-a Brazilian catfish-in a farm in Paraná State, Brazil; diseased animals showed ascites and neurological signs of infection, with more than 50% mortality. Exotic invasive species susceptible to this bacterium have been reported in this area. We assessed the susceptibility of pintado to E. ictaluri with experimental infection via intraperitoneal and immersion methods as well as a cohabitation experiment with Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus and African walking catfish Clarias gariepinus, 2 exotic invasive species. All pintados challenged by intraperitoneal and immersion routes and those cohabiting with infected C. gariepinus died within 17 d of the challenge. Mortality of Nile tilapia reached 71.42% after the intraperitoneal and 35.71% in the immersion challenges within 28 d, whereas African walking catfish showed zero mortality. Observed clinical signs were comparable to those in the farm and those described in the literature as enteric septicemia of catfish. With this study, we demonstrated the susceptibility of P. corruscans to E. ictaluri, as well as interspecies transmission of this bacterium.