scholarly journals Parasitic Intestinal Protists of Zoonotic Relevance Detected in Pigs by Metabarcoding and Real-Time PCR

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1189
Author(s):  
Christen Rune Stensvold ◽  
Kateřina Jirků-Pomajbíková ◽  
Katrine Wegener Tams ◽  
Pikka Jokelainen ◽  
Rebecca P. K. D. Berg ◽  
...  

Several parasite species are shared between humans and pigs. We explored the application of next-generation sequencing-based metabarcoding supplemented with real-time PCR to fecal DNAs from 259 samples from 116 pigs in Denmark to detect and differentiate single-celled intestinal parasites of zoonotic relevance. Enterocytozoon bieneusi, Balantioides coli, and Giardia duodenalis were observed in 34/37 (92%), 148/259 (57%), and 86/259 (33%) samples, respectively. Entamoeba polecki ST1, E. polecki ST3, and Entamoeba hartmanni were detected in 104/259 (40%), 161/259 (62%), and 8/259 (3%) samples, respectively. Metabarcoding and real-time PCR detected Cryptosporidium in 90/259 (35%) and 239/259 (92%) of the samples, respectively, with Cryptosporidium suis and Cryptosporidium scrofarum observed in nearly equal proportions. Blastocystis subtypes 1, 3, 5, and 15 were found in 72 (28%), 6 (2%), 176 (68%), and 36 (14%) of 259 samples, respectively. Iodamoeba was identified in 1/259 samples (<1%), while none of 37 tested samples was positive for Dientamoeba fragilis. Our results illustrate how metabarcoding exemplifies a ‘one-fits-many’ approach to detecting intestinal single-celled parasites in feces supplemented with real-time PCR for selected parasites. Using metabarcoding with pathogen-specific assays may help detect emerging and previously underdetected pathogens and further elucidate the role of micro-eukaryotic parasites in human and animal health and disease.

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 54
Author(s):  
Salem Belkessa ◽  
Daniel Thomas-Lopez ◽  
Karim Houali ◽  
Farida Ghalmi ◽  
Christen Rune Stensvold

The molecular epidemiology of giardiasis in Africa remains unclear. A study was carried out across four hospitals in Algeria. A total of 119 fecal samples from 55 children, 37 adults, and 27 individuals of undetermined age, all scored positive for intestinal parasites by microscopy, and were screened by real-time PCR for Giardia. Molecular characterization of Giardia was performed by assemblage-specific PCR and PCR targeting the triose phosphate isomerase gene (tpi). Of the 119 samples, 80 (67%) were Giardia-positive by real-time PCR. For 48 moderately-highly real-time PCR-positive samples, tpi genotyping assigned 22 samples to Assemblage A and 26 to Assemblage B. Contrary to Assemblage A, Assemblage B exhibited substantial genetic diversity and allelic heterozygosity. Assemblage-specific PCR proved to be specific for discriminating Assemblage A or B but not as sensitive as tpi genotyping. We confirmed that real-time PCR is more sensitive than microscopy for detecting Giardia in stool samples and that robust amplification and sequencing of the tpi gene is feasible when moderate-to-strongly real-time PCR-positive samples are used. This study is one of the few performed in Africa providing genotyping data on Giardia infections in humans. Both assemblages A and B were commonly seen and not associated with specific sociodemographic data.


Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 656
Author(s):  
Konstantin Tanida ◽  
Andreas Hahn ◽  
Kirsten Alexandra Eberhardt ◽  
Egbert Tannich ◽  
Olfert Landt ◽  
...  

Microsporidiosis is an infection predominantly occurring in immunosuppressed patients and infrequently also in travelers. This study was performed to comparatively evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of real-time PCR assays targeting microsporidia with etiological relevance in the stool of human patients in a latent class analysis-based test comparison without a reference standard with perfect accuracy. Thereby, two one-tube real-time PCR assays and two two-tube real-time PCR assays targeting Enterocytozoon bieneusi and Encephalocytozoon spp. were included in the assessment with reference stool material (20), stool samples from Ghanaian HIV-positive patients (903), and from travelers, migrants and Colombian indigenous people (416). Sensitivity of the assays ranged from 60.4% to 97.4% and specificity from 99.1% to 100% with substantial agreement according to Cohen’s kappa of 79.6%. Microsporidia DNA was detected in the reference material and the stool of the HIV patients but not in the stool of the travelers, migrants, and the Colombian indigenous people. Accuracy-adjusted prevalence was 5.8% (n = 78) for the study population as a whole. In conclusion, reliable detection of enteric disease-associated microsporidia in stool samples by real-time PCR could be demonstrated, but sensitivity between the compared microsporidia-specific real-time PCR assays varied.


Open Medicine ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koray Ergunay ◽  
Gulcin Altinok ◽  
Bora Gurel ◽  
Ahmet Pinar ◽  
Arzu Sungur ◽  
...  

AbstractIntrauterine Parvovirus B19 infections may cause fetal anemia, non-immune hydrops fetalis or abortion. This study focuses on the pathogenic role of Parvovirus B19 in non-immune hydrops fetalis at Hacettepe University, a major reference hospital in Turkey. Twenty-two cases of non-immune hydrops fetalis were retrospectively selected out of a total of 431 hydrops fetalis specimens from the Department of Pathology archieves. Paraffine embedded tissue sections from placental and liver tissues from each case were evaluated by histopathology, immunohistochemistry, nested PCR and commercial quantitative Real-time PCR. Viral DNA was detected in placental tissues by Real-time PCR in 2 cases (2/22, 9.1%) where histopathology also revealed changes suggestive of Parvovirus B19 infection. No significant histopathologic changes were observed for the remaining sections. Nested PCR that targets the VP1 region of the viral genome and immunohistochemistry for viral capsid antigens were negative for all cases. As a result, Parvovirus B19 is identified as the etiologic agent for the development of non-immune hydrops fetalis for 9.1% of the cases in Hacettepe University, Turkey. Real-time PCR is observed to be an effective diagnostic tool for nucleic acid detection from paraffine embedded tissues. Part of this study was presented as a poster at XIIIth International Congress of Virology, San Francisco, USA (Abstract V-572).


Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 461
Author(s):  
Madjid Morsli ◽  
Quentin Kerharo ◽  
Jeremy Delerce ◽  
Pierre-Hugues Roche ◽  
Lucas Troude ◽  
...  

Current routine real-time PCR methods used for the point-of-care diagnosis of infectious meningitis do not allow for one-shot genotyping of the pathogen, as in the case of deadly Haemophilus influenzae meningitis. Real-time PCR diagnosed H. influenzae meningitis in a 22-year-old male patient, during his hospitalisation following a more than six-metre fall. Using an Oxford Nanopore Technologies real-time sequencing run in parallel to real-time PCR, we detected the H. influenzae genome directly from the cerebrospinal fluid sample in six hours. Furthermore, BLAST analysis of the sequence encoding for a partial DUF417 domain-containing protein diagnosed a non-b serotype, non-typeable H.influenzae belonging to lineage H. influenzae 22.1-21. The Oxford Nanopore metagenomic next-generation sequencing approach could be considered for the point-of-care diagnosis of infectious meningitis, by direct identification of pathogenic genomes and their genotypes/serotypes.


2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 159
Author(s):  
Yulia Yulia ◽  
Lukman Mohammad Baga ◽  
Netti Tinaprilla

Agam District Government has the goal of improving economic growth rate of 5.94 percent in 2011 to 7.98 percent in 2017. However, the constraints experienced by the development of the animal husbandry sector is a decrease in the growth rate of the animal husbandry sector and the contribution to the GDP, it is necessary for the development of the animal husbandry subsector in Agam by taking into account various aspects. This study aims to analyze the potential and role of formulating priority strategies of alternative development strategy animal husbandry subsector. Results of the analysis of the animal husbandry subsector LQ is a commodity basis. The shift results proportional growth 10.72 percent negative growth. Region share growth of 2.33 percent. The results obtained from the alternative strategies SWOT matrix were analyzed using QSPM. development and coaching each region based on the existing potential (6.278), increasing the promotion and development of human resources breeder (5.773), to build and develop patterns of cooperation and mutual benefit (5.618), examination of animal health and disease prevention (5.406), implementation and development appropriate technology (5.330) and optimization in securing local resources (4.982). Selected strategic alternatives of highest appeal total development strategy as well as coaching is done each region based on the existing potential (6.278), then the suggestions can be made to the Government Agam namely increasing the number of livestock extension workers and attract investors to develop the livestock subsector in Agam District.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Yamamoto ◽  
H Yasukawa ◽  
J Takahashi ◽  
S Nohara ◽  
T Sasak ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Interleukin-22 (IL-22) is a member of the IL-10 cytokine family, which mainly targets epithelial cells and does not target immune cells. Recently, it has been reported that IL-22 play roles in tissue repair in the skin and the liver; however, role of IL-22 in the process of tissue repair after myocardial infarction (MI) is unknown. Here, we investigated the role of IL-22 in tissue repair process after MI. Methods and results First, we examined the expression of IL-22 and its receptor IL-22RA1 in the wild type (WT) mice by real-time PCR. The expression of IL-22 and IL-22RA1 in the hearts were significantly increased 3 days after MI (p<0.05). To clarify the role of IL-22 in the heart after MI, we produced MI model in the WT mice and IL-22 knockout (KO) mice. We found that the IL-22 KO mice had significantly higher mortality than the WT mice after MI (p<0.05). Approximately 80% of the IL-22 KO mice died with cardiac rupture after MI. The infarct size which was estimated by evans blue dye and triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining at 3 days after MI was comparable between the IL-22 KO mice and the WT mice. Next, we performed real time PCR and PCR array analysis for tissue fibrosis and repair genes. We found that alpha-smooth muscle actin (aSMA), NF-kB, TNF-a and MMP13 (also known as collagenase-3) were significantly increased in the infarct area of IL-22 KO mice compared to WT mice. Immunostaining showed that the myofibroblast marker aSMA positive cells in the border area after MI were markedly higher in the IL-22 KO mice compared with the WT mice (p<0.05). Approximately 70% of cardiac rupture after MI in the IL-22 KO mice were occurred in the infarct area adjacent to the border area. Furthermore, we found aSMA positive cells and MMP13 positive cells around the ruptured site of the heart. Conclusion Thus, IL-22 KO mice exhibit high mortality and increased cardiac rupture after MI. And expression of aSMA and MMP13 were highly expressed in the ruptured site after MI in the IL-22 KO mice. These results suggest that IL-22 may play an important role in the tissue repair process after MI.


Pathogens ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivornpun Sanprasert ◽  
Ruthairat Kerdkaew ◽  
Siriporn Srirungruang ◽  
Sarit Charuchaibovorn ◽  
Kobpat Phadungsaksawasdi ◽  
...  

Soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) are the most common intestinal parasites infecting humans worldwide. STH infections are a major cause of morbidity and disability. Accurate diagnostic tools are pivotal for assessing the exact prevalence of parasitic infections. Microscopic examination and culture techniques have been used to observe the presence of eggs or larvae of parasites in stool samples, but they are time-consuming and have low sensitivity. Therefore, accurate, simple, and inexpensive diagnostic techniques are still required for simultaneous detection of STH infections. Although molecular-based techniques, such as real-time PCR and multiplex real-time PCR, have been developed, they are not suitable for routine diagnosis due to the requirement for expensive reagents and instruments. In this study, we established a conventional multiplex PCR for simultaneous rapid detection of Ascaris lumbricoides, Necator americanus, and Strongyloides stercoralis in stool samples. Our results show that the multiplex PCR could detect the DNA of STHs at a very low target gene concentrations (lower than 1 pg) with no cross-amplification. Multiplex PCR had five times higher sensitivity than the formalin–ethyl acetate concentration technique (FECT) in the detection of multiple infections, and two times higher for detection of S. stercoralis. However, multiplex PCR was comparable to FECT in the detection of A. lumbricoides and N. americanus. In conclusion, this method could be used as an alternative method for the detection of STHs, especially for S. stercoralis.


2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 194 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. F. Schütz ◽  
J. E. Ervin ◽  
L. Zhang ◽  
C. Robinson ◽  
M. Totty ◽  
...  

Endothelins are a group of vasoactive 21 amino acid peptides reported to play roles in steroidogenesis, folliculogenesis, and ovulation (Bridges et al. 2012 Life Sci. 91, 501–506). Nevertheless, the role of endothelins in regulating steroidogenesis in the bovine species requires further investigation. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the effects of endothelin 1 (ET-1) and endothelin 2 (ET-2) on bovine granulosa cell (GC) steroidogenesis. Bovine ovaries were obtained from a local abattoir. Follicular fluid was aspirated from small (1–5 mm) follicles and GC were isolated and exposed to various treatments (ET-1, ET-2, or ET-1 plus ET-2 with FSH and with or without insulin-like growth factor-1). In replicated experiments, culture medium was removed and analysed for steroid production via radioimmunoassay. Granulosa cells were either harvested with trypsin and counted using a Coulter Counter or collected with Trizol for RNA extraction and quantification via real-time PCR (18S rRNA was used as a housekeeping gene). Steroid production was expressed as nanograms (in the case of progesterone) and picograms (in the case of oestradiol) per 105 cells per 24 h. Relative quantity of target gene mRNA was expressed as 2–ΔΔCt using the relative comparative threshold cycle (Ct) method. Data were analysed via ANOVA and the general linear models (GLM) procedure of SAS for Windows (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). If a significant main effect was identified, differences among means were determined by Fisher’s protected least significant differences test. The values were reported as least squares means ± standard error of the mean. In the presence of insulin-like growth factor-1, ET-1 significantly inhibited oestradiol production at 300 ng mL–1 (100.30 ± 11.05; P < 0.05), but not at 30 ng mL–1 (114.47 ± 11.05; P > 0.05) in comparison to the control (141.21 ± 11.05), whereas no differences were observed for progesterone production at 300 ng mL–1 (60.11 ± 7.11; P > 0.05) or at 30 ng mL–1 (64.02 ± 7.11; P > 0.05) in comparison to control (76.75 ± 7.11). ET-2 also significantly inhibited oestradiol production at 300 ng mL–1 (91.08 ± 11.87; P < 0.01), but not at 30 ng mL–1 (112.77 ± 11.87; P > 0.05) in comparison to the control in the presence of insulin-like growth factor-1. No significant effect of ET-1 and ET-2 was observed on steroidogenesis of granulosa cells cultured without insulin-like growth factor-1. Consistent with steroids production data, real-time PCR results indicated that, in the presence of IGF-1, ET-1 (5.66 ± 1.05) and ET-2 (5.65 ± 1.05) inhibited (P < 0.05) aromatase gene expression compared to controls (11.33 + 1.05), and ET-1 plus ET-2 (2.42 ± 1.05) reduced (P < 0.05) expression below that observed with either alone. No effect of ET-1 (4.38 ± 0.95; P > 0.05), ET-2 (5.94 ± 0.95; P > 0.05), or ET-1 plus ET-2 (4.57 ± 0.95; P > 0.05) was observed for side-chain cleavage enzyme (CYP11A1) in comparison to controls (4.4 ± 1.07). Altogether, these results indicate that endothelins are involved in the regulation of steroidogenesis of bovine GC.


Author(s):  
Dennis Back Holmgaard ◽  
Celine Barnadas ◽  
Seyed Hossein Mirbarati ◽  
Lee O’Brien Andersen ◽  
Henrik Vedel Nielsen ◽  
...  

Acanthamoeba is a free-living amoeba of extensive genetic diversity. It may cause infectious keratitis (IK), which can also be caused by bacteria, fungi, and viruses. High diagnostic sensitivity is essential to establish an early diagnosis of Acanthamoeba-associated keratitis. Here, we investigated the applicability of next-generation sequencing (NGS)-based ribosomal gene detection and differentiation (16S-18S) compared with specific real-time PCR for detection of Acanthamoeba. Two hundred DNAs extracted from corneal scrapings and screened by Acanthamoeba-specific real-time PCR were analyzed using an in-house 16S-18S NGS assay. Of these, 24 were positive using specific real-time PCR, 21 of which were positive using the NGS assay. Compared with real-time PCR; the specificity and sensitivity of the NGS assay were 100% and 88%, respectively. Genotypes identified by the NGS assay included T4 (n = 19) and T6 (n = 2). Fungal and bacterial species of potential clinical relevance were identified in 31 of the samples negative for Acanthamoeba, exemplified by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n = 11), Moraxella spp. (n = 6), Staphylococcus aureus (n = 2), Fusarium spp. (n = 4), and Candida albicans (n = 1). Conclusively, the 16S-18S assay was slightly less sensitive than real-time PCR in detecting Acanthamoeba-specific DNA in corneal scrapings. Robust information on genotype was provided by the NGS assay, and other pathogens of potential clinical relevance were identified in 16% of the samples negative for Acanthamoeba. NGS-based detection of ribosomal genes in corneal scrapings could be an efficient screening method for detecting non-viral causes of IK, including Acanthamoeba.


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