scholarly journals Early Detection of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis Infected Cattle: Use of Experimental Johnins and Innovative Interferon-Gamma Test Interpretative Criteria

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Corneli ◽  
Antonella Di Paolo ◽  
Nicoletta Vitale ◽  
Martina Torricelli ◽  
Linda Petrucci ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Interferon Gamma ◽  
Mycobacterium Avium ◽  
Operating Characteristic ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Infected Cattle ◽  
Advanced Stages ◽  
Ifn Γ ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Mycobacterium Avium Subsp Paratuberculosis ◽  
Medium Culture

Paratuberculosis (PTB), also known as Johne's disease, is a chronic proliferative enteritis of ruminants caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp.paratuberculosis (MAP). To date, PTB diagnosis, based on serology, fecal culture, and real-time polymerase chain reaction, has identified animals in advanced stages of infection. To detect MAP infection in animals earlier, the interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) test may be applied. This assay detects cytokines produced by T-lymphocytes of infected subjects after stimulation with purified protein derivatives (PPDs), extracted from Mycobacterium bovis (MB) and from M. avium (MA). The study involved three bovine herds: one PTB-infected herd, one PTB-free herd, and one with an outbreak of bovine tuberculosis. The IFN-γ test was performed on 235 animals, using bovine PPD (PPDB), avian PPD (PPDA), and three experimental PPD Johnins (PPDJs) extracted from a synthetic liquid medium culture of MAP (PPDJ A, B, and C), to assess early MAP detection and avoid false reactions to MB. Furthermore, IFN-γ results were evaluated using 12 interpretative criteria (ICs), based on the differences and ratio between PPD optical density (OD) and IFN-γ basal OD values after lymphocytic stimulation. IC accuracy was expressed as area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Through a longitudinal study, PPDJs proved to be specific and sensitive in the detection of MAP-infected animals. Among the evaluated ICs, six showed the best performance in terms of accuracy (p < 0.0001), highlighting PTB subclinical infections. In particular, the two best criteria reached sensitivity values of 100% [confidence interval (CI) 95%, 94.1–100%] with a specificity of 91.8% (CI 95%, 81.9–97.3%) and sensitivity levels of 80.6% (CI 95%, 69.1–89.2%) with a specificity of 100% (CI 95%, 94.1–100%). Thus, the IFN-γ assay proved to be a useful diagnostic tool to identify early subclinical MAP-infected animals, in order to manage infected cattle or those exposed to MAP and to monitor younger calves within a herd. Furthermore, the IFN-γ test can be considered an additional test to avoid the introduction of MAP-infected animals, especially in herds where disease has already been eradicated and preservation of the health status is required to maintain the PTB certification level.

Three plasma-based microRNAs as potent diagnostic biomarkers for endometrial cancer

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Xingchen Fan ◽  
Minmin Cao ◽  
Cheng Liu ◽  
Cheng Zhang ◽  
Chunyu Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endometrial Cancer ◽  
Operating Characteristic ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
External Validation ◽  
Diagnostic Value ◽  
Diagnostic Biomarkers ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Public Datasets ◽  
Plasma Mirnas

BACKGROUND: MicroRNAs (miRNAs), with noticeable stability and unique expression pattern in plasma of patients with various diseases, are powerful non-invasive biomarkers for cancer detection including endometrial cancer (EC). OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to identify promising miRNA biomarkers in plasma to assist the clinical screening of EC. METHODS: A total of 93 EC and 79 normal control (NC) plasma samples were analyzed using Quantitative Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) in this four-stage experiment. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis was conducted to evaluate the diagnostic value. Additionally, the expression features of the identified miRNAs were further explored in tissues and plasma exosomes samples. RESULTS: The expression of miR-142-3p, miR-146a-5p, and miR-151a-5p was significantly overexpressed in the plasma of EC patients compared with NCs. Areas under the ROC curve of the 3-miRNA signature were 0.729, 0.751, and 0.789 for the training, testing, and external validation phases, respectively. The diagnostic performance of the identified signature proved to be stable in the three public datasets and superior to the other miRNA biomarkers in EC diagnosis. Moreover, the expression of miR-151a-5p was significantly elevated in EC plasma exosomes. CONCLUSIONS: A signature consisting of 3 plasma miRNAs was identified and showed potential for the non-invasive diagnosis of EC.

scholarly journals Stratified Threshold Values of QuantiFERON Assay for Diagnosing Tuberculosis Infection in Immunocompromised Populations

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haruyuki Ariga ◽  
Hideaki Nagai ◽  
Atsuyuki Kurashima ◽  
Yoshihiko Hoshino ◽  
Syunsuke Shoji ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Operating Characteristic ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Latent Tuberculosis ◽  
Absolute Number ◽  
Threshold Values ◽  
Risk Of Progression ◽  
Healthy Control ◽  
Ifn Γ ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Hiv Negative

Background. The detection of latent tuberculosis (TB) is essential for TB control, but T-cell assay might be influenced by degree of immunosuppression. The relationship between immunocompetence and interferon (IFN)-γ response in QuantiFERON-TB Gold (QFT) is uncertain, especially in HIV-negative populations.Methods and Results. QFT has been performed for healthy subjects and TB suspected patients. Of 3017 patients, 727 were diagnosed as pulmonary TB by culture. The absolute number of blood lymphocyte in TB patients was significantly associated with QFT. Definitive TB patients were divided into eight groups according to lymphocyte counts. For each subgroup, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was conducted from 357 healthy control subjects. The optimal cut-off for the patient group with adequate lymphocyte counts was found, but this was reduced for lymphocytopenia.Conclusions. The lymphocyte count was positively associated with QFT. Positive criteria should be calibrated in consideration of cell-mediated immunocompetence and risk of progression to active TB.

scholarly journals Upregulation of the RNF8 gene can predict the presence of sperm in azoospermic individuals

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-67
Author(s):  
Majid Nazari ◽  
Emad Babakhanzadeh ◽  
S. Mohsen Aghaei Zarch ◽  
Mehrdad Talebi ◽  
Nima Narimani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Operating Characteristic ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Testicular Biopsy ◽  
Negative Group ◽  
Nonobstructive Azoospermia ◽  
Entire Study ◽  
Biopsy Specimens ◽  
Study Population ◽  
Polymerase Chain

Objective: In this study, specimens from testicular biopsies of men with nonobstructive azoospermia (NOA) were used to investigate whether <i>RNF8</i> gene could serve as a biomarker to predict the presence of sperm in these patients.Methods: Testicular biopsy specimens from 47 patients were classified according to the presence of sperm (positive vs. negative groups) and investigated for the expression of <i>RNF8</i>. The level of <i>RNF8</i> gene expression in the testes was compared between these groups using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction.Results: The expression level of <i>RNF8</i> was significantly higher in testicular samples from the positive group than in those from the negative group. Moreover, the area under the curve of <i>RNF8</i> expression for the entire study population was 0.84, showing the discriminatory power of <i>RNF8</i> expression in differentiating between the positive and negative groups of men with NOA. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that <i>RNF8</i> expression had a sensitivity of 81% and a specificity of 84%, with a cutoff level of 1.76.Conclusion: This study points out a significant association between the expression of <i>RNF8</i> and the presence of sperm in NOA patients, which suggests that quantified <i>RNF8</i> expression in testicular biopsy samples may be a valuable biomarker for predicting the presence of spermatozoa in biopsy samples.

scholarly journals Detection of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis by several diagnostics techniques in clinical suspected sheep

2018 ◽  
Vol 68 (2) ◽  
pp. 167
Author(s):  
A. C. COELHO ◽  
A. M. COELHO ◽  
J. GARCÍA-DIEZ ◽  
M. A. PIRES ◽  
M. L. PINTO
Keyword(s):  
Mycobacterium Avium ◽  
Bacterial Culture ◽  
Histopathological Examination ◽  
Diagnostic Techniques ◽  
Clinical Findings ◽  
Mycobacterium Avium Subsp ◽  
Clinical Symptomatology ◽  
Faecal Samples ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Mycobacterium Avium Subsp Paratuberculosis

A total of thirty sheep with clinical symptomatology of paratuberculosis (Johne’s disease) were subjected to four diagnostic techniques: histopathological examination, bacteriological culture (in faeces and tissues), polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (in blood, tissue and faecal samples) and antibody responses (ELISA). Twenty-one (70.0%) animals showed histological lesions. Bacterial culture of both faeces and tissue revealed that 2 (6.7%) and 6 (20.0%) of the 30 sheep were infected, respectively. Mycobacterium avium subsp. 24 paratuberculosis (Map) was identified in 4 animals via PCR of faeces (13.3%), and in 19 (63.3%) by PCR in tissues. PCR in blood revealed 7 (23.3%) infected animals. Three (10.0%) animals showed antibodies against Map. A greater number of positive animals were detected by histopathological examination and PCR in tissues than by culture or ELISA. This study confirmed the clinical findings and results suggest that histopathology, PCR in tissues and in blood can improve the detection of Map in physically suspected animals and should be considered useful tools in the diagnosis of Map in suspected sheep.

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