Diagnóstico de leptospirosis mediante técnicas moleculares: ventajas y limitaciones en Medicina Veterinaria

Abstract

Leptospirosis is an emerging worldwide zoonosis caused by pathogenic spirochaetes of the genus Leptospira. The disease is of great importance both economically and for the public health. The diagnosis of leptospirosis is complex and usually done by bacteriological and serological methods. In recent decades, the application of molecular techniques such as Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) has achieved the diagnosis of many diseases of microbial etiology, including leptospirosis. The aim of this study was to review PCR protocols published in veterinary medicine to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of this applied technique to clinical diagnosis and epidemiological studies. Although the application of PCR proved to be a useful complement to the referenced methods, additional studies are needed regarding the use of it for the diagnosis of disease in animals. We conclude that the interpretation of the results obtained with the PCR technique must include an internal amplification control for each protocol and must choose nested PCR techniques or real time, due to its higher sensitivity and specificity.