scholarly journals Identification of latent neosporosis in sheep in Tehran, Iran by polymerase chain reaction using primers specific for the Nc-5 gene

Author(s):  
Mohsen Arbabi ◽  
Amir Abdoli ◽  
Abdolhossein Dalimi ◽  
Majid Pirestani

Little is known about latent infection and molecular characterisation of Neospora caninum in sheep (Ovis aries). In this study, 330 sheep samples (180 hearts and 150 brains) were analysed for N. caninum DNA by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting the Nc-5 gene. Neospora caninum DNA was detected in 3.9% (13/330) of sheep samples. The parasite’s DNA was detected in 6.7% of heart samples (12/180) and 0.7% (1/150) of brain samples. No clinical signs were recorded from infected or uninfected animals. Sequencing of the genomic DNA revealed 96% – 99% similarity with each other and 95.15% – 100% similarity with N. caninum sequences deposited in GenBank. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the use of PCR to identify latent neosporosis in sheep in Iran. The results of this study have the potential to contribute to our understanding of the role of N. caninum-infected sheep in the epidemiology of neosporosis.

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Mokua Mose ◽  
John Maina Kagira ◽  
Simon Muturi Karanja ◽  
Maina Ngotho ◽  
David Muchina Kamau ◽  
...  

The detection ofToxoplasma gondiiin free-range chickens is a good indicator of possible risk to human beings. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence ofT. gondiiin free-range chicken using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Brain samples from 105 free-range chickens from three administrative areas in Thika region, Kenya, were collected, DNA-extracted, and analyzed using PCR to detect presence ofT. gondii. The overall prevalence ofT. gondiiin all the three areas was 79.0% (95% CI: 70.0–86.4%) and the prevalence across the three areas was not significantly different (P=0.5088;χ2=1.354). Female chickens had higher (79.4%) prevalence than males (78.6%), although the difference was not significant (P=0.922,χ2= 0.01). However, chickens that were more than 2 years old had significantly (P=0.003;χ2= 11.87) higher prevalence compared to younger ones. The study indicates that there was a high occurrence ofT. gondiiinfection in free-range chickens from Thika region and that the infection rate is age dependent. Further studies should be carried out to determine the possible role of roaming chickens in the epidemiology of the disease among humans in the area.


2016 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 138-143
Author(s):  
Shafinaz Khan ◽  
Ruhul Amin Mia ◽  
Sumaiya Khatun

A nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) specific for Salmonella enterica subspecies enteric serovar Typhi was used for the detection of the pathogen in blood. This study was done during the period of March 2013 to February 2014. A total of 80 clinically suspected cases of typhoid fever were included in the study. Blood was collected from all participating individuals. Nested PCR targeting the flagellin gene (fliC) of Salmonella Typhi & blood culture were done for each of the cases. The positivity rate of PCR & blood culture was 70%& 20% respectively. The positivity rate of PCR was significantly higher than blood culture (P< 0.05). With the nested PCR, S. Typhi DNAs were detected from blood specimens of 67.2% (43/64) patients among the suspected typhoid fever cases on the basis of clinical features but with negative cultures. We conclude that the PCR technique could be used as a novel diagnostic method of typhoid fever, particularly in culture-negative cases in an endemic country like Bangladesh.


2014 ◽  
Vol 104 (3) ◽  
pp. 233-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
María José Iglesias Sánchez ◽  
Ana María Pérez Pico ◽  
Félix Marcos Tejedor ◽  
María Jesús Iglesias Sánchez ◽  
Raquel Mayordomo Acevedo

Background Dermatomycoses are a group of pathologic abnormalities frequently seen in clinical practice, and their prevalence has increased in recent decades. Diagnostic confirmation of mycotic infection in nails is essential because there are several pathologic conditions with similar clinical manifestations. The classical method for confirming the presence of fungus in nail is microbiological culture and the identification of morphological structures by microscopy. Methods We devised a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that amplifies specific DNA sequences of dermatophyte fungus that is notably faster than the 3 to 4 weeks that the traditional procedure takes. We compared this new technique and the conventional plate culture method in 225 nail samples. The results were subjected to statistical analysis. Results We found concordance in 78.2% of the samples analyzed by the two methods and increased sensitivity when simultaneously using the two methods to analyze clinical samples. Now we can confirm the presence of dermatophyte fungus in most of the positive samples in just 24 hours, and we have to wait for the result of culture only in negative PCR cases. Conclusions Although this PCR cannot, at present, substitute for the traditional culture method in the detection of dermatophyte infection of the nails, it can be used as a complementary technique because its main advantage lies in the significant reduction of time used for diagnosis, in addition to higher sensitivity.


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