Trichinellosis dissemination among wild carnivores in the Republic of Kazakhstan: A 10-year study.

Background and Aim: Trichinellosis is caused by a species of roundworm called Trichinella and is an invasive disease causing severe medical, veterinary, and socioeconomic problems worldwide. More than 100 mammalian species are Trichinella hosts. Among domestic animals, pigs and dogs are prone to trichinellosis. An essential aspect of controlling the spread of infection is to identify the number and level of infections in wild carnivores in the country. However, the number, habitats, and movements of wild animal Trichinella hosts in Kazakhstan have not been reported yet. This study aimed to monitor the wild animal habitat nearby the settlements for tracking the trichinellosis speading among carnivores. Materials and Methods: Wild carnivorous animals were captured in seven regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The carcasses of corsacs, wolves, foxes, wild boars, and badgers were studied. Muscle tissue samples from spontaneously infected wild animals were collected. The digestion method in "GASTROS-2M" was used to isolate Trichinella spp. from animal muscles. The species of the parasite was determined by a polymerase chain reaction for 5S spacer of Trichinella ribosomal DNA with subsequent sequencing by Senger. Statistical analysis methods were performed for average value in Microsoft Excel 2010. Results: The results of the research showed that among 155 animals wolves (20.4%) and foxes (26.7%) were the most infected with invasive Trichinella larvae. The invasion intensity was 503.6% in foxes and 289.7% in wolves. However, badgers (164%), wild boars (0%), and corsacs (0%) presented lower invasion levels. Using specific primers, larvae samples were identified as Trichinella nativa. Conclusion: The results of monitoring revealed the spread of trichinosis among wild animals: wolves, foxes, badgers. The Karaganda, Kostanay, Western Kazakhstan, and Akmola regions had the largest distribution of wild animals infected with trichinellosis. In total, 20% of the 155 studied animals were infected. The greatest invasion intensity was typical for wolves, foxes and badgers. It is necessary to monitor the spread of trichinellosis among wild carnivores to control the epidemiological situation and reduce the level of spontaneous infection among animals. Regular monitoring of habitats and carnivores must be conducted within the country and in the border areas.

Mapping the risks of the spread of peste des petits ruminants in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) is a viral transboundary disease seen in small ruminants, that causes significant damage to agriculture. This disease has not been previously registered in the Republic of Kazakhstan (RK). This paper presents an assessment of the susceptibility of the RK's territory to the spread of the disease in the event of its importation from infected countries. The negative binomial regression model that was trained on the PPR outbreaks in China, was used to rank municipal districts in the RK in terms of PPR spread risk. The outbreak count per administrative district was used as a risk indicator, while a number of socio-economic, landscape, and climatic factors were considered as explanatory variables. Summary road length, altitude, the density of small ruminants, the maximum green vegetation fraction, cattle density, and the Engel coefficient were the most significant factors. The model demonstrated a good performance in training data (R2  = 0.69), and was transferred to the RK, suggesting a significantly lower susceptibility of this country to the spread of PPR. Hot spot analysis identified three clusters of districts at the highest risk, located in the western, eastern, and southern parts of Kazakhstan. As part of the study, a countrywide survey was conducted to collect data on the distribution of livestock populations, which resulted in the compilation of a complete geo-database of small ruminant holdings in the RK. The research results may be used to formulate a national strategy for preventing the importation and spread of PPR in Kazakhstan through targeted monitoring in high-risk areas.

Development of an ELISA using anti-idiotypic antibody for diagnosis of opisthorchiasis.

Monoclonal antibody specific for an epitope of cretory-secretory antigen protein of Opisthorchis felineus (Rivolta, 1884) (Trematoda: Opisthorchiidae) with a molecular weight of 28 kDa was used in a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for immobilisation of liver fluke specific antigen to the solid phase. Examination of human sera by this ELISA compared with commercial assays demonstrated that the monoclonal antibody epitope is located within this significant parasite protein. Anti-idiotypic antibody specific for the paratope of this monoclonal antibody was obtained by a hybridoma technique. Mimicking an epitope of excretory-secretory antigen of O. felineus, it had the capacity to bind specific antibody and elicit an antibody response. The value of anti-idiotypic antibody as a substitute for the liver fluke antigen was tested by ELISA using serum samples of infected dogs. Anti-idiotypic antibody proved to be of value in both an indirect-ELISA and a competitive-ELISA for diagnosis of opisthorchiasis. Mature trematodes were isolated from all infected animals. The faecal egg counts were negative in dogs with a relatively small number of parasites, despite finding antibodies in serum by ELISA. Substitution of parasite antigen with anti-idiotype avoids the use of experimental animals and also reduces time-consuming steps of antigen preparation.