- 1Instituto
de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. mrojasmontes@gmail.com.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION:
Infections,
particularly diarrheal infections, are a major cause of neonatal death
in South American camelids. The aim of this study was to identify the
pathogens that could have caused the recent diarrhea outbreak among the
alpacas in Silli, Cusco, located in the southern Peruvian highland.
METHODOLOGY:
Spleen,
kidney, and intestine tissue along with fecal and intestinal lavage
samples were obtained from 50 one- to five-week-old alpacas and analyzed
for the presence of parasites, bacteria, and viruses.
RESULTS:
Laboratory
testing of the 50 crias included in this study revealed that 80% were
infected with Eimeria spp., 40% with coronavirus, 34% with E. coli, 32%
with rotavirus, 22% with Clostridium spp., and 20% with Cryptosporidium
spp. Of these 50 alpaca crias, 20 presented with a single infection (19
positive for Eimeria spp. and 1 positive for rotavirus). Co-infections
with up to four pathogens occurred in 60% of the samples. The
significance of such infections is not clear, but it is noteworthy that
the animals suffering from necrotic and/or hemorrhagic enteritis
presented with quadruple infections. It is likely that co-infections
increase the severity of the disease.
CONCLUSIONS:
These
data show that multiple pathogens circulate among young alpaca crias
and could be associated with diarrheal disease in these animals. The
findings from this study warrant the provision of subsidies for future
assessment of the potential economic impact of these infections on the
productivity of the Peruvian alpaca industry.
- [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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