ABSTRACT: The population of grey seals Halichoerus grypus in Canadian waters is currently used as a commercial source of meat for human consumption. As with domestic livestock, it is important to understand the occurrence in these seals of infectious agents that may be of public health significance and thus ensure appropriate measures are in place to avoid zoonotic transmission. This study examined the prevalence of antibodies against Brucella spp., Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, 6 serovars of Leptospira interrogans, and Toxoplasma gondii in 59 grey seals and determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) the presence of these potentially zoonotic agents in specific organs and tissues of seropositive animals. The presence of encysted Trichinella spp. larvae was also investigated by digestion of tongue, diaphragm and other muscle samples, but none were detected. Seroprevalence against Brucella spp. and E. rhusiopathiae was low (5 and 3%, respectively). All 59 seals tested had antibodies against L. interrogans, but no carrier of this bacterium was detected by PCR. Seroprevalence against T. gondii was 53%, and DNA of this protozoan was detected by PCR in 11/30 (37%) seropositive animals. Standard sanitary measures mandatory for commercialization of meat products for human consumption should greatly reduce the potential for exposure to these infectious agents. However, special consideration should be given to freezing seal meat for at least 3 d to ensure destruction of tissue cysts of T. gondii.

中文翻译：

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圣劳伦斯湾灰海豹嗜盐菌暴露于潜在的人畜共患传染病原体

摘要：加拿大海域的海豹灰海豚种群目前被用作人类食用肉的商业来源。与家畜一样，重要的是要了解这些海豹中可能具有公共卫生意义的传染原的发生，从而确保采取适当措施避免人畜共患病传播。这项研究检查了抗布鲁氏菌属，红斑丹毒，6种问号钩端螺旋体和弓形虫抗体的患病率在59个灰海豹中，通过聚合酶链反应（PCR）确定了这些潜在的人畜共患病菌在血清反应阳性动物的特定器官和组织中的存在。存在的旋毛虫属。还通过消化舌，diaphragm肌和其他肌肉样本研究了幼虫，但未检测到。对布鲁氏菌属的血清阳性率。和风湿性肠炎低（分别为5％和3％）。测试的所有59种海豹都具有抗询问乳杆菌的抗体，但是PCR并未检测到该细菌的载体。弓形虫血清阳性率DNA含量为53％，并通过PCR在11/30（37％）血清反应阳性动物中检测到了这种原生动物的DNA。供人类食用的肉类产品商业化强制执行的标准卫生措施应大大减少接触这些传染源的可能性。但是，应特别考虑将海豹肉冷冻至少3天，以确保破坏弓形虫的组织囊肿。