02513nas a2200205   4500000000100000008004100001100001600042700001200058700001600070700001100086700001200097700001600109700001500125700001200140245014300152856006400295490003400359520190000393022001402293       2019                            d1 aSchilling A1 aHooij A1 aCorstjens P1 aLurz P1 aPozo JD1 aStevenson K1 aMeredith A1 aGeluk A00aDetection of humoral immunity to mycobacteria causing leprosy in Eurasian red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) using a quantitative rapid test  uhttps://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10344-019-1287-10 v653548474717519112156107356783 a<p>Eurasian red squirrels (<em>Sciurus vulgaris</em>, ERS) in the British Isles are a recently discovered natural host for <em>Mycobacterium leprae</em> and <em>Mycobacterium lepromatosis</em>. Infected squirrels can develop skin lesions or carry the bacteria without showing clinical signs. Until now the clinical diagnosis of leprosy could only be confirmed in squirrels by isolating DNA of leprosy bacilli from carcasses or by establishing the presence of acid-fast bacilli in skin sections of carcasses with clinical signs. In this study, we assessed the performance of a field-friendly diagnostic test for detection of <em>M</em>. <em>leprae</em>/<em>M</em>. <em>lepromatosis</em> infection in ERS. This up-converting phosphor lateral flow assay (UCP-LFA) is well established for detection of <em>M</em>. <em>leprae</em> specific anti-phenolic glycolipid-I antibodies (αPGL-I) IgM antibodies in humans and associated with bacterial load. Assessment was performed on serum and blood drops from live squirrels and body cavity fluid samples from dead squirrels. Clinically diseased squirrels showed significantly higher αPGL-I levels than healthy animals or subclinically infected individuals (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.0001), both in serum and whole blood drop samples. Subclinically, infected animals were identified using molecular methods to detect the presence of leprosy bacilli DNA in punch biopsy tissue samples. In body cavity fluids, αPGL-I levels antibody levels were lower than in serum or blood drops. This study shows that the αPGL-I UCP-LFAs presented here allows a field-friendly serological confirmation of <em>M</em>. <em>leprae</em> infection in clinically diseased live ERS. For surveillance purposes, the combination of clinical assessment, αPGL-I UCP-LFAs, and molecular methods allow the identification of both diseased animals and subclinically infected animals.</p>
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