Nested-PCR assay for detection of Schistosoma japonicum infection in domestic animals.

BACKGROUND: Schistosomiasis japonica is a common zoonosis. Domestic animals are the primary source of infection and play an important role in disease transmission. The prevalence and infectivity of this disease in domestic animals in China have significantly decreased and, for this reason, diagnostics with a higher sensitivity have become increasingly necessary. It was reported that polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods could be used to detect schistosome infection in humans and animals and presented a high sensitivity and specificity. The present study aimed to develop a PCR-based method for detection of Schistosoma japonicum infection in domestic animals. METHODS: A specific nested-PCR assay was developed to detect S. japonicum infection in domestic animals via amplification of a 231-bp DNA fragment of retrotransposon SjR2. The developed assay was first used in sera and dry blood filter paper (DBFP) from goats and buffaloes at different time points of infection. Then, 78 DBFPs from 39 artificially-infected bovines at 14 and 28 days post-infection and 42 DBFPs from schistosome-negative bovines from the city of Huangshan in the Anhui province were used to evaluate the diagnostic validity. Furthermore, this assay was used to detect S. japonicum infection in domestic animals in Dongzhi and Wangjiang counties. RESULTS: The expected PCR product was detected in eggs and adult worms of S. japonicum and blood samples from S. japonicum-infected goats and water buffaloes, but not from Fasciola and Haemonchus contortus worms. The nested-PCR assay could detect the target S. japonicum DNA in DBFPs from goats and buffaloes after day 3 post-infection. The sensitivity in buffaloes at 14 and 28 days post-infection was 92.30% (36/39) and 100% (39/39), respectively. The specificity was 97.60% (41/42). The positivity rates in Dongzhi and Wangjiang counties were 6.00% and 8.00% in bovines and 22.00% and 16.67% in goats, respectively. The positivity rates in goats in both counties were higher than those in bovines with a significant difference in Dongzhi County but not in Wangjiang County (P < 0.05 and P = 0.23, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the developed nested-PCR assay may be used for the diagnosis of S. japonicum infection in domestic animals, and the control of S. japonicum infection in goats should be paid more attention.

Synthesis, crystal structure and biological activity of two Mn complexes with 4-acyl pyrazolone derivatives.

In order to study the biological activities of transitional metal complexes based on 4-acyl pyrazolone derivatives, two Mn complexes [Mn(HLa)(La)]·(CH3CN)1.5·H2O (1) and [Mn2(Lb)2(µ-EtO)2(EtOH)2] (2) (H2La = N-(1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-benzoyl-5-pyrazolone)-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid hydrazide, H2Lb = N-(1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-propenylidene-5-pyrazolone)-2-thiophenecarboxylic acid hydrazide) have been synthesized and characterized. Single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that 1 is a mononuclear complex and 2 exhibits a dinuclear centrosymmetric structure. Binding of the complexes with Herring Sperm DNA (HS-DNA) showed that complexes 1 and 2 could intercalate to DNA with quenching constant of 5.3×10(4) M(-1) and 4.9×10(4) M(-1), respectively. The interactions of the complexes with bovine serum albumin (BSA) indicated that complexes 1 and 2 could quench the intrinsic fluorescence of BSA in a static quenching process. Further, the inhibitory effects of the complexes on the cell population growth of the human esophageal cancer Eca-109 cells and the cervical cancer HeLa cells were determined by MTT assay, which indicated that both 1 and 2 significantly inhibited the growth of Eca-109 and HeLa cells, the inhibitory activity of complex 1 is stronger than that of 2. We further observed that complex 1 inhibited the growth of HeLa cells through inducing the apoptosis and arresting cell cycle at S phase. Our results suggested that both complexes 1 and 2 have DNA- and protein-binding capacity and antitumor activity.

Crystal structure of (Z)-N'-[1-(3-methyl-5-oxo-1-phenyl-1,5-di-hydro-4H-pyrazol-4-yl-idene)prop-yl]benzene-sulfono-hydrazide.

The title compound, C19H20N4O3S, was synthesized by refluxing equimolar amounts of 1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-propionylpyrazol-5-one and benzene-sulfonyl hydrazide in ethanol. The compound crystallizes in the keto form and the carbonyl O atom forms an intra-molecular N-H⋯O hydrogen bond with the neighbouring NH group. There is also C-H⋯O short contact involving the neighbouring phenyl ring. Probably as a result of this, the phenyl ring is inclined to the pyrazolone ring by only 7.58 (12)°. The dihedral angle between the phenyl ring and the benzene-sulfonyl ring is 22.78 (11)°. In the crystal, mol-ecules are linked by pairs of N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming inversion dimers with an R (2) 2(14) ring motif. The dimers are linked via pairs of C-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming chains propagating along [100].