Resumo

Helicobacterspp. is a Gram negative spiral-shaped bacteria, responsible for gastric infections in dogs and cats. The prevalence varies from 67 to 100% and the pathogenicity to dogs remain unclear. In humans, H.spp. infections are associated with gastrointestinal diseases and cancers. In dogs and cats, however, clinically healthy hosts are typically found. While H. felis is implicated as a potential pathogen in humans, many other species are still under research. The route of transmission of H.spp. is uncertain, but is known to spread by direct contact as oral-oral, gastro-oral, and fecal-oral routes. H. spp infection is predominant in the developing world, and low socio-economic status is associated with increased prevalence of the infection. Fecal contamination of common sources including water and soil has been implicated in spread of the infection. This is supported by the findings that H.spp. infection rates are higher in developing countries, where untreated water and inadequately prepared vegetables contaminated with soil are common. In animals, the DNA of H.spp. has been detected from sources other than gastric tissues, which include vomitus and saliva, dental plaques, and feces. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of H. spp. in feces of domestic dogs in the city of Botucatu, São Paulo State. We collected 176 fecal samples from dogs, of which 90 were from stray animals captured by the Zoonosis Control Service and 86 obtained from privately owned, household dogs. Subsequently, DNA was extracted from an aliquot of 200 mg of feces for the diagnosis by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) using DNA STOOL MINI KIT (Qiagen®).A region of approximately 400 base pairs of the 16S rRNA gene was amplified using primers F:5'-TCC ATG ACG ATC GGT C-3' and R:5'-GAT TTC ACA ACC CCT CCA-3'. The PCR was performed in a final volume of 25 µl containing 12,5 µl of 2X Master Mix® Green GoTaq buffer, 10 pmol of each primer and 5 µl of sample DNA. In a study of 176 stool samples analyzed, 89 were positive (64.5% originated from stray dogs and 36.0% from household dogs). In agreement with other studies, the frequency of H.spp. dogs in shelters was higher due to the housing conditions (high population density, stress, poor diet quality, presence of undercurrents diseases) which would increase the exposure and susceptibility of animals to infection by this agent.