Molecular characterization of Ascaridia galli from Bangladesh and development of a PCR method for distinguishing A. galli from Heterakis spp.

We analyzed the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 1 and ITS2 sequences for Bangladesh isolates of Ascaridia galli, and we determined that the sequences were unreliable as molecular markers for distinguishing A. galli from other Ascaridia species, because the sequences showed high identity with that of A. columbae. However, the ITS1 sequences were available for designing PCR primers distinguishable between Ascaridia galli and Heterakis spp. Bangladesh isolates of A. galli constituted a monophyletic clade along with other geographical isolates in the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) phylogenetic tree, however, we could not clarify the phylogenetic relationships between A. galli and other Ascaridia spp., because their available sequences in GenBank were very few. The developed PCR method using DNA from A. galli and Heterakis spp. eggs would enable differential diagnosis of the individual infections in the future.     

Evaluation the effect of subchronic feeding of transgenic cotton line (CKC1) on the faecal microbiota of albino rabbits

Recent studies have demonstrated a strong relationship between the intestinal microbiota and the host health. As such, consumers are increasingly becoming more concerned about the potential effect of certain foods/feeds, particularly of transgenic origin on the gut microbiota. Although the European Food Safety Authority has recommended in their guidelines, to study the effect of transgenic food/feed on host-microbiota, yet, few studies have focused on the evaluation of such effects mainly due to culturing difficulties. Therefore, this study was intended to evaluate the potential adverse effects of transgenic diet consumption on some specific gut microflora (Lactobacillus group, Bifidobacterium genus, Escherichia coli subgroup and Enterococcus genus) of rabbits. A total of forty-eight rabbits were randomly assigned into four groups and fed a diet containing a variable proportion of transgenic cottonseeds at 0, 20, 30 and 40% inclusion level, respectively. Changes in the specific or total faecal bacterial population were monitored at five different experimental stages (i.e. 0, 45, 90, 135 and 180 days) using both the traditional plate count method (TM) and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). No significant differences (p > .05) were observed concerning numbers of specific bacteria or total bacteria between the control and experimental groups, though qPCR showed numerically higher values in terms of 16S rRNA gene copies as compared to the values obtained from TM. However, such numerical differences were biologically insignificant (p > .05). Similarly, no significant variations were noticed in the calculated B/E (log₁₀ copies of Bifidobacterium per g faces/log10 copies of E. coli genome per g faeces) ratios in all the groups. All the ratios were in the range of 1.24 to 1.30 throughout the experiment, indicating a good balance of intestinal microflora and greater resistance to intestinal disorders. It is therefore concluded that feeding transgenic cottonseeds could not adversely affect the gut microflora of rabbits during a long-term study.     

Recovery of sperms bearing X chromosomes with different concentrations of magnetic nanoparticles in ram

Pre-conceptual sex selection is still a highly debatable process whereby X and Y chromosome bearing spermatozoa are isolated before oocyte fertilization. Recently, magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) have been used to determine X and Y chromosomes bearing spermatozoa as a result of searching for a cheap, highly efficient method using non-toxic materials. This study aimed to recover the sperm bearing X chromosomes in ram with different concentrations of MNP and then evaluate the success of this method using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Ram sperms were divided into four groups, treated with 0 (control), 50, 100 and 200 μg/ml MNP, respectively. MNP was used to restore sperm cells bearing X chromosomes. Upon recovery, the PCR was performed to identify the X and Y sperms, Methyl ThiazoleTetrazolium (MTT), to assess MNP toxicity and sperm viability and acridine orange (AO) to evaluate sperm DNA integrity. The results of PCR revealed that the treatment of spermatozoa- bearing X chromosomes with 50 μg/ml MNP had the highest effects on the recovery of X sperm rather than the other concentrations of MNP. However, the concentrations of MNP did not have any toxic effects on spermatozoa, sperm viability and, DNA integrity, but the high concentration of MNP (200 μg/ml) significantly reduced DNA integrity. According to MTT and AO results, the concentrations of MNP used in this study had no toxic effects on spermatozoa and did not reduce the sperm viability and DNA integrity, except that 200 μg/ml MNP significantly reduced DNA integrity.     

基于非洲猪瘟病毒标准物质的荧光PCR检测试剂盒初步评价

为探究非洲猪瘟病毒(African swine fever virus,ASFV)标准物质作为试剂盒评价体系的可行性,比较了市场上5种主流品牌ASFV荧光PCR检测试剂盒的检测性能。使用ASFV P72基因核酸标准物质作为模板,根据5种试剂盒说明书分别进行相应的荧光定量PCR检测,结合扩增曲线、Ct值,分析不同试剂盒的敏感性、可重复性以及所需反应时间。结果显示:5种试剂盒的阴性、阳性对照均成立,最低检测限均为5.9×10^-1拷贝/μL;4个厂家的试剂盒线性关系R2>0.98,其中最优的R²=0.994,离散度最小;各试剂盒的实际反应耗时与理论反应耗时均有一定差异(0.20~0.96 h)。结果表明,各生产厂家使用P72基因作为靶基因研制的ASFV荧光PCR检测试剂盒都可以使用ASFV标准物质作为评价体系,来评判试剂盒的检测性能。本试验为各实验室不同样品检测的ASFV荧光PCR检测试剂盒选择提供了一种可用的评价方法。     

非洲猪瘟病毒核酸定性检测方法比对

为提升兽医实验室非洲猪瘟病毒核酸检测能力和质量控制水平,积累检测经验,以更好地开展非洲猪瘟检测,2020年7月,参加了北京市农业农村局组织的“非洲猪瘟实验室检测能力比对”项目。本次比对同时选用《非洲猪瘟检疫技术规范》(SNT 1559—2010标准)中的普通PCR方法、荧光定量PCR方法以及商品化试剂盒,对5份验证样品开展非洲猪瘟病毒核酸检测和结果比对。比对发现,3种检测方法结果一致,样品检测结果与预期一致,结果满意。此次比对确认了实验室现有检测方法能够满足非洲猪瘟病毒核酸的日常检测需求,同时提升了实验室人员的检测能力,积累了检测经验,可为非洲猪瘟防控提供有力的技术支撑。     

植物病原真菌尖孢镰刀菌检测与定量研究进展

尖孢镰刀菌（Fusarium oxysporum）是一种危害严重的土传病原真菌,被列为世界十大植物病原真菌之一。该菌能够侵染棉花（Gossypium hirsutum）、大豆（Glycine max）、西瓜（Citrullus lanatus）、香蕉（Musa nana）、番茄（Lycopersicon esculentum）和苜蓿（Medicago sativa）等100多种具有重要经济价值的作物,引起枯萎病和根腐病等。对土壤和植物根组织中的尖孢镰刀菌进行检测和定量是病害早期诊断和有效防治的基础。本文对国内外关于尖孢镰刀菌检测和定量方法（主要包括培养基菌落平板稀释法、常规PCR和实时荧光定量PCR等）及其应用进行总结,旨在对农牧业生产中尖孢镰刀菌检测和定量提供理论指导。     

补播羊草和黄花苜蓿对退化草甸植物群落特征的影响

呼伦贝尔草原区是我国北方重要的生态屏障,近年来不合理的利用方式导致该地区退化草地面积不断扩大,为了探究牧草补播时间及补播比例对呼伦贝尔退化草甸草原植物群落特征的影响,为该地区退化草地修复提供依据。本研究以羊草（Leymus chinensis（Trin.） Tzvel.）和黄花苜蓿（Medicago falcata L.）为试验材料,采用双因素随机区组试验设计,通过测定幼苗数、高度、生物量等群落指标,并综合评价补播效果,结果表明：夏播羊草和黄花苜蓿幼苗数量显著高于春播和秋播（P<0.05）,夏播和秋播植物群落总生物量呈增加趋势,春播则呈减少趋势;补播措施提高了退化草地植物群落Shannon-Weiner指数、Simpson指数和Pielou指数,豆科和禾本科植物重要值呈增加趋势,其他科植物呈下降趋势。呼伦贝尔地区夏季补播羊草和黄花苜蓿以1∶3补播效果较好,而春播由于恢复时间短,需进一步观察。     

Validation of a multiplex PCR assay to detect Babesia spp. and Anaplasma marginale in cattle in Uruguay in the absence of a gold standard test

Detection of bovine Babesia spp. and Anaplasma marginale is based on the reading of Giemsa-stained blood or organ smears, which can have low sensitivity. Our aim was to improve the detection of bovine Babesia spp. and A. marginale by validating a multiplex PCR (mPCR). We used 466 samples of blood and/or organs of animals with signs and presumptive autopsy findings of babesiosis or anaplasmosis. The primers in our mPCR amplified the rap-1a gene region of Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, and the msp-5 region of A. marginale. We used a Bayesian model with a non-informative priori distribution for the prevalence estimate and informative priori distribution for estimation of sensitivity and specificity. The sensitivity and specificity for smear detection of Babesia spp. were 68.6% and 99.1%, and for A. marginale 85.6% and 98.8%, respectively. Sensitivity and specificity for mPCR detection for Babesia spp. were 94.2% and 97.1%, and for A. marginale 95.2% and 92.7%, respectively. Our mPCR had good accuracy in detecting Babesia spp. and A. marginale, and would be a reliable test for veterinarians to choose the correct treatment for each agent.     

Rapidly quantitative detection of Nosema ceranae in honeybees using ultra-rapid real-time quantitative PCR

BackgroundThe microsporidian parasite Nosema ceranae is a global problem in honeybee populations and is known to cause winter mortality. A sensitive and rapid tool for stable quantitative detection is necessary to establish further research related to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of this pathogen.ObjectivesThe present study aimed to develop a quantitative method that incorporates ultra-rapid real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (UR-qPCR) for the rapid enumeration of N. ceranae in infected bees.MethodsA procedure for UR-qPCR detection of N. ceranae was developed, and the advantages of molecular detection were evaluated in comparison with microscopic enumeration.ResultsUR-qPCR was more sensitive than microscopic enumeration for detecting two copies of N. ceranae DNA and 24 spores per bee. Meanwhile, the limit of detection by microscopy was 2.40 × 10⁴ spores/bee, and the stable detection level was ≥ 2.40 × 10⁵ spores/bee. The results of N. ceranae calculations from the infected honeybees and purified spores by UR-qPCR showed that the DNA copy number was approximately 8-fold higher than the spore count. Additionally, honeybees infected with N. ceranae with 2.74 × 10⁴ copies of N. ceranae DNA were incapable of detection by microscopy. The results of quantitative analysis using UR-qPCR were accomplished within 20 min.ConclusionsUR-qPCR is expected to be the most rapid molecular method for Nosema detection and has been developed for diagnosing nosemosis at low levels of infection.