Search Results (4)

Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) are bred as livestock in South American countries from the Andean region, including Ecuador. Despite their importance for the local rural economy, no public health management guidelines have ever been implemented for guinea pig farming. Moreover, several reports have shown the carriage of diverse zoonotic pathogens in livestock guinea pigs, including respiratory and enteric pathogens, or Toxoplasma gondii. Leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease caused by bacteria from Leptospira genus, is endemic in Ecuador and has multiple animal reservoirs, with rodents considered to be the main vector for transmission to humans. However, the role of livestock guinea pigs in the epidemiology of leptospirosis is poorly understood. In this study, the prevalence of antibodies against Leptospira in guinea pigs from Ecuador was analyzed with the Microaglutiantion Test (MAT). Moreover, the shedding of Leptospira by backyard livestock guinea pigs was also addressed, analyzing fecal and urine samples by qPCR for lipL32, secY and rrs genes. From the 118 guinea pigs analyzed by MAT, 61.9% were positive for 19 different pathogenic serovars, with Icterohaemorrhagiae, Pomona, Castellonis and Bataviae being the most prevalent ones. From the 231 urine samples and 225 fecal samples collected, 27.7% and 78.7% were positive for Leptospira by qPCR, respectively. Our results highlight the role of livestock guinea pigs as a reservoir for leptospirosis. Moreover, this study underscores the zoonotic threat associated with the shedding of Leptospira within households in rural communities where guinea pigs are bred as livestock. Animal and public health guidelines from a One Health perspective must be implemented to prevent leptospirosis transmission from guinea pigs in Ecuador and other countries in the Andean Region where the breeding of backyard livestock guinea pigs is common. Full article

In the last decade, the production of guinea pig meat in Andean countries has increased due to the growing number of consumers of this meat. Objective: To evaluate the effect of including different doses (0.50, 1.00, and 1.50 mL) of agro-industrial substrates (molasses distillery waste) fermented with lactic acid bacteria and yeasts on productive performance, hematological profile, relative weight changes in digestive tract organs, and changes in the intestinal microbiota in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus). Materials: A total of 300 guinea pigs, Kuri breed, aged 20 days and weighing 330 g, were distributed into 10 groups of 30 animals each. Ctrl, Control. La, substrate fermented with Lactobacillus acidophilus (8.1 × 10⁷ CFU/mL). Kf, substrate fermented with Kluyveromyces fragilis (7.4 × 10⁶ CFU/mL). La + Kf, substrate fermented with bacteria and yeasts; the evaluated doses were 0.50, 1.00, and 1.50 mL/animal. The indicators evaluated in the study included weight gain, health, hematological profile, relative weight of digestive tract organs, and changes in the intestinal microbiota. Results: The parameters evaluated were toxicity, productive parameters, occurrence of diarrhea and mortality, and blood profile. The results showed a significant increase in the weight of the animals consuming probiotics, especially at higher doses. Additionally, an improvement in the intestinal microbiota was observed, with an increase in beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus and a decrease in pathogenic bacteria. Probiotics also influenced the hematological parameters and the weight of digestive tract organs, suggesting a positive effect on the overall health of the animals. Conclusions: Supplementation with probiotics proved to be a promising strategy for improving productive performance and intestinal health in guinea pigs. Supplementation with L. acidophilus and K. fragilis significantly enhances guinea pig growth and modulates the intestinal microbiota. The combination of strains and appropriate doses maximizes benefits. These results promise applications in animal production, requiring further studies to confirm their efficacy in other species and developmental stages. Full article

Sperm morphology can predict the reproductive male fertilizing potential. This study aimed to determine the morphological and morphometric spermatozoa characteristics from guinea pigs subjected to different photoperiodic stimulation. Thirty F1 guinea pigs were randomly assigned to three photoperiodic treatments: FT1 (photoperiod with 10 Light/14 Dark LED light), FT2 (photoperiod with 10L/14D sunlight), and FT0 (room without direct light source). At 107 ± 9.8 days of age, sperm concentration and motility were higher in the FT0 and FT1 groups (p < 0.05); furthermore, there were no differences in nucleus length and ellipticity between the FT0 and FT1 groups, but the sperm of the FT1 group was higher in perimeter and nuclear area, while that of the FT0 group was higher in roughness, regularity, midpiece length, and tail (p < 0.01). Expanding acrosome (Type 2) was more frequent in the FT2 group, but there was variation in head measurements between all morphological categories. Pregnancy rate, calving age, and mating age were higher in the FT0 group; meanwhile, the FT1 group initiated successful matings earlier (p < 0.01). The FT0 group had a higher fertility rate, and the age of mating and first calving were earlier in the FT1 group than the FT0 group, but no pregnancies were reported for the FT2 group. Photoperiodic stimulation can increase the morphometric dimensions of guinea pig spermatozoa, favoring the reproductive characteristics, but sunlight could reduce their size due to heat stress. Full article

Interleukin (IL)-33 is a proinflammatory mediator that alerts the host immune system to disorders in tissue homeostasis. Aim. To understand the role of IL-33 in modulating gastric tissue cell growth affected by Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). Methods. IL-33 production in guinea pigs (Caviae porcellus) experimentally infected with H. pylori was evaluated by ELISA or immunohistochemical staining. The proregenerative activity of IL-33 was evaluated using gastric epithelial cells and fibroblasts that were naive or transfected with IL-33 siRNA exposed to H. pylori glycine acid extract antigenic complex (GE), as well as by measuring cell migration, proliferation, metabolic activity and apoptosis. Animals infected by H. pylori responded with increased production of IL-33. Also, cells treated in vitro with GE released more IL-33 than cells that were unstimulated. Silencing IL-33 in cells resulted in downregulation of metabolic activity, adhesion, migration and proliferation, especially after treatment with H. pylori GE, as well as upregulation of cells apoptosis associated with caspase 3 increase and Bcl-xL decrease, suggesting proregenerative activity of IL-33. Interestingly, upregulation of cell proliferation by IL-33 was Erk independent. Our results indicate that IL-33 may protect gastric tissue from loss of homeostasis caused by deleterious effects of H. pylori components and the inflammatory response developed during infection. Full article