Chapter 22
Use of Golden Syrian Hamster as an Animal Model to Study
Leptospirosis-Associated Immune Responses
Julie Cagliero, Karl Huet, and Mariko Matsui
Abstract
Experimental infections greatly contribute to further deepen our knowledge of infectious diseases. In the
case of leptospirosis, hamsters as well as gerbils and guinea pigs have been used as animal models of acute
leptospirosis in studying the pathophysiology of the disease. Here we describe a typical Leptospira infection
using golden Syrian hamsters. We will also present techniques we use to study the resulting bacterial burden
and gene expression patterns in the host in order to decipher the innate immune response to leptospirosis.
Key words Leptospirosis, Leptospira, Syrian hamster, Experimental infection, Gene expression
1 Introduction
Leptospirosis is a re-emerging zoonotic disease caused by pathogenic spirochetal bacteria from the genus Leptospira and estimated
to infect more than a million people with approximately 60,000
deaths annually [1]. Typically, asymptomatic reservoir animals,
mostly rodents, carry the pathogen in their renal tubules and shed
pathogenic spirochetes in their urine, contaminating the environment [2]. Accidental hosts of leptospires, like humans, can be
infected through direct contact with urine from reservoir animals
or contaminated soil or water, and most human infections are mild,
with mainly flu-like symptoms, or even asymptomatic [3, 4]. However, roughly 10% of human leptospirosis cases develop into severe
forms, among which are the Weil’s disease and the severe pulmonary hemorrhagic syndrome, and lead to high leptospiremia, multiorgan failures, and a dramatically increased mortality rate.
This broad spectrum of symptoms renders the diagnosis difficult, as this disease can be mistaken with other acute febrile syndromes, and optimal treatment for leptospirosis remains a subject
of debate [3, 5, 6]. Besides, to date, there is still no universal
vaccine providing a long-lasting protection against leptospirosis
Nobuo Koizumi and Mathieu Picardeau (eds.), Leptospira spp.: Methods and Protocols, Methods in Molecular Biology, vol. 2134,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0459-5_22, © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
243
Use of Golden Syrian Hamster as an Animal Model to Study
Leptospirosis-Associated Immune Responses
Julie Cagliero, Karl Huet, and Mariko Matsui
Abstract
Experimental infections greatly contribute to further deepen our knowledge of infectious diseases. In the
case of leptospirosis, hamsters as well as gerbils and guinea pigs have been used as animal models of acute
leptospirosis in studying the pathophysiology of the disease. Here we describe a typical Leptospira infection
using golden Syrian hamsters. We will also present techniques we use to study the resulting bacterial burden
and gene expression patterns in the host in order to decipher the innate immune response to leptospirosis.
Key words Leptospirosis, Leptospira, Syrian hamster, Experimental infection, Gene expression
1 Introduction
Leptospirosis is a re-emerging zoonotic disease caused by pathogenic spirochetal bacteria from the genus Leptospira and estimated
to infect more than a million people with approximately 60,000
deaths annually [1]. Typically, asymptomatic reservoir animals,
mostly rodents, carry the pathogen in their renal tubules and shed
pathogenic spirochetes in their urine, contaminating the environment [2]. Accidental hosts of leptospires, like humans, can be
infected through direct contact with urine from reservoir animals
or contaminated soil or water, and most human infections are mild,
with mainly flu-like symptoms, or even asymptomatic [3, 4]. However, roughly 10% of human leptospirosis cases develop into severe
forms, among which are the Weil’s disease and the severe pulmonary hemorrhagic syndrome, and lead to high leptospiremia, multiorgan failures, and a dramatically increased mortality rate.
This broad spectrum of symptoms renders the diagnosis difficult, as this disease can be mistaken with other acute febrile syndromes, and optimal treatment for leptospirosis remains a subject
of debate [3, 5, 6]. Besides, to date, there is still no universal
vaccine providing a long-lasting protection against leptospirosis
Nobuo Koizumi and Mathieu Picardeau (eds.), Leptospira spp.: Methods and Protocols, Methods in Molecular Biology, vol. 2134,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0459-5_22, © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
243