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This article describes a lethal case of leptospirosis that occurred in Southern Russia. The Leptospira strain was isolated and characterized using a microscopic agglutination test, MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry, targeted PCR, and high-throughput sequencing. We show that molecular and mass-spectrometry methods can be an alternative to conventional methods of leptospirosis diagnostics and Leptospira study, which require highly qualified staff and can be performed only at specialized laboratories. We also report the first whole genome of L . interrogans isolated in Russia.

Aim: An attempt to use MALDI-TOF mass-spectrometry method for identification of lep- tospiral isolates on the serovar level., Materials and Methods: 8 reference Leptospira spp. and 11 leptospira strains isolated from leptospiral patients and infected animals in the North-Western region of Russia were included into the study. Mass-spectra of all the studied strains were obtained by direct profiling of cell extracts. The created main spectral profiles (MSP) of reference strains were used for identification of isolates. Evaluation of identification was carried out by calculating coefficients of matching rate of separate spectra of each isolate with MSP of all the reference strains., Results: Results of identification have shown the similarity of spectra of isolates belonging to Pomona, Icterohaemorrhagiae and Canicola serogroups, with MSP of saprophyte strain L. biflexa Patoc I. It is assumed that spectra of the studied strains contained peaks of polysaccha- ride Ο-antigens. Wherein maximum mean values of matching rate coefficients between spectra of isolates and MSP of pathogenic reference strains of leptospira correctly matched serovar type of the isolate., Conclusion: Further extended studies may form the base of development of a simple and rapid method oftyping of leptospirosis causative agents on the level of serovars using MALDITOF mass-spectrometry.

Aim: Comparative typing of Leptospira spp. strain collection based on analysis of 16S RNA fragment., Materials and Methods: 2 pairs of primers were used for PCR, that jointly flank 1423b.p. sized fragment. Sequences of Leptospira spp. strain 16S rRNA, presented in the international database, were used for phylogenetic analysis., Results: A high similarity, including interspecies, of the 16S fragment in Leptospira spp. strains was shown independently of the source, serovar and serogroup. Heterogeneity of the primary matrix, spontaneous mutations of hotspots and erroneous nucleotide couplings, characteristic for 16S sequence of pathogenic Leptospira spp. strains, are discussed. Molecular-genetic characteristic of certain reference Leptospira spp. strains by 16S sequence is obtained., Conclusion: Results of the studies give evidence on expedience of introduction into clinical practice of identification of Leptospira spp. by 16S sequence directly from the clinical material, that would allow to significantly reduce identification time, dismiss complex type-specific sera and other labor-intensive methods.

Aim: Study of the ability of clinical isolates of leptospira to cause production of certain pro- and antiinflammatory cytokines in the model of human whole blood., Materials and Methods: Leptospira interrogans strain was taken for the experiment. Cytokine content was determined by a method based on xMAP technology using a standard panel, composed of 9 analytes: TNF-α, MCP-1, IL-8, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-IRa, IL- 12 (p70), IFN-γ., Results: An optimal concentration of L. interrogans was selected for stimulation of human whole blood--1 x 10(6) leptospirae/ml. For the first time in the model of human whole blood it was determined, that at early stages of incubation IFN-γ, IL-12(p70), IL-4 and IL-1Ra are more actively produced; at later stages (6 hour incubation)--IL-8 and TNF-α., Conclusion: A differential pattern of cytokine production stimulation was shown in the model of human whole blood by live and inactivated leptospirae.

Aim: Creation of a classification model of Leptospira spp. serovar model using ClinProTools 3.0 software and evaluation of use of MALDI-TOF MS as a method of quality control of reference strains of leptospira., Materials and Methods: 10 reference strains of Leptospira spp. were used in the study according to microscopic agglutination reaction from the collection of Pasteur RIEM. All the strains were cultivated for 10 days in Terskikh medium at 28 degrees C. Cell extracts were obtained by ethanol/formic acid method. α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid solution was used as a matrix. Mass-spectra were obtained in Microflex mass-spectrometer (Bruker Daltonics, Germany). External validation of the test-model was carried out using novel spectra of every reference strain during their repeated reseeding., Results: Values of cross-validation and confirmatory ability of the optimal model, built on a genetic algorithm, was 99.14 and 100%, respectively. This model contained 11 biomarker peaks (m/z 2959, 3447, 3548, 3764, 3895, 5221, 5917, 6173, 6701, 7013, 8364) for serovar classification. Results of the external validation have shown a 100% correct classification in serovar classesin Sejroe, Ballum, Tarassovi; Copenhageni, Mozdoc, Grippotyphosa and Patoc, that indicates a high prognostic ability of the model in these classes. However, data from verification matrix have shown, that 50%.of the spectra from Canicola and Pomona serovars were classified as Patoc class, that could be associated with cross serological activity of Patoc serovar L. biflexa with pathogenic leptospirae., Conclusion: MALDI-TOF mass-spectrometry method combined with building and using the classification model could be a useful instrument for intra-laboratory control of leptospira reseeding.

We analyzed restriction fragment length polymorphism of lipL32 gene encoding outer membrane protein in three Leptospira genomic species (L. interrogans, L. kirschneri, and L. borgpetersenii) using Bsa29 I and Bam HI restriction endonucleases. It was found that restriction profiles of the studied gene were similar at both the intraspecific and serogroup levels; variability was revealed only at the interspecific level, which can be explained by relatively low variability of lipL32 gene.