Rapid and simple detection of Glaesserella parasuis in synovial fluid by recombinase polymerase amplification and lateral flow strip.

BACKGROUND: Glaesserella parasuis (G. parasuis) is an influential pathogen of the pig, which induces high morbidity and mortality in naive pig populations in the pig industry. Accurate and rapid detection of the agent is important for disease control. In this study, a simple recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) with a Lateral flow (LF) strip (RPA-LF-GPS) was developed to detect G. parasuis. RESULTS: The RPA-LF-GPS can specifically detect G. parasuis a limit of 100 CFU from other common related pathogens causing arthritis in the pig. The RPA-LF-GPS assay can use boiled synovial fluid samples as a template with the same sensitivity as other DNA extraction methods. In the detection of clinic positive synovial fluid sample, RPA-LF-GPS is equally sensitive (98.1%) compared with that of PCR (90.4%) (P > 0.05). The whole procedure of the RPA-LF-GPS assay could be finished in 1 hour without professional equipment. CONCLUSIONS: RPA-LF-GPS assay is a rapid and simple method for point-of-care diagnostic testing for G. parasuis infection.

Development and application of a simple recombinase polymerase amplification assay for rapid point-of-care detection of feline herpesvirus type 1.

Feline herpesvirus type 1 (FHV-1) is a highly contagious pathogen of domestic cats and other members of the family Felidae. Point-of-care diagnosis of persistent infection in cats is essential for control of its spread. A recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) assay (RPA-LFD-FHV) combined with a lateral flow dipstrip (LFD) was developed that uses human body heat for incubation. Sensitivity was evaluated by testing a serial dilution of a control plasmid, and specificity was evaluated by testing related viruses. Swab samples from cats with suspected infection were tested by RPA-LFD-FHV, and the results were compared to those obtained by PCR to evaluate its clinical performance. The RPA-FLD-FHV assay was carried out successfully within 20 min, using body heat for incubation. The RPA-FLD-FHV had a detection limit of 103 copies of the FHV-1 gD gene, which was lower than that of PCR, which was 104 copies. The assay could detect templates of FHV-1 but not those of other feline and canine viruses. Viruses in boiled samples could be efficiently detected by the RPA-FLD-FHV. Thirty-one out of the 80 samples were positive by the RPA-FLD-FHV assay, whereas only 27 were positive by PCR. DNA sequencing confirmed that the four samples that were positive by RPA-FLD-FHV but negative by PCR were indeed positive. These results indicate that RPA-FLD-FHV is applicable for clinical use. The RPA-FLD-FHV assay is a simple, rapid, and reliable method for point-of-care diagnosis of FHV-1 infection.

Stable expression of green fluorescent protein mediated by GCV in Giardia canis.

Giardia canis can be infected with a double-stranded RNA virus, that is giardiavirus (G. canis virus, GCV). In this study, green fluorescent protein (GFP) was stably expressed in G. canis mediated by GCV. The plasmid pNEO/GDH/MCS/GFP, containing the neomycin phosphotransferase (NEO) encoding region flanked by the 636 nt of 5'-terminus and the 2174 nt of 3'-terminus from GCV positive strand RNA, was constructed by inserting GFP gene into downstream from the NEO gene and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) 5'-terminus uncoding regions on a single plasmid, and its in vitro transcript was introduced into GCV-infected G. canis by electroporation. The transfectants expressed GFP persistently under G418 selection. This stable transfection system should provide a valuable tool for genetic study of G. canis.

Cryptosporidium parvum: identification of a new surface adhesion protein on sporozoite and oocyst by screening of a phage-display cDNA library.

Cryptosporidium parvum is a significant cause of diarrheal disease worldwide. The specific molecules that mediate C. parvum-host interaction and the molecular mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis are unknown. In this study we described a novel phage display method to identify surface adhesion proteins of C. parvum. A cDNA library of the sporozoite and oocyst stages of C. parvum expressed on the surface of T7 phage was screened with intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) from the newborn Cryptosporidium-free Holstein calves. Proteins that selectively and specifically bound to IECs were then enriched using a multi-step panning procedure. Two proteins of C. parvum were selected, one was previously reported (p23), which was an important surface adhesion protein; the other was a novel surface adherence protein (CP12). Sequence analysis showed that CP12 has a N-terminal signal peptide, a transmembrane region, a N-glycosylation site, a casein kinase II phosphorylation site and two N-myristoylation sites. Immunofluorescence assay (IFA) using antibody specific for rCP12 demonstrated that the antibody can specifically bind the surface of sporozoite and oocyst, especially apical region of sporozoite. The surface localization of CP12 and its involvement in the host-parasite interaction suggest that it may serve as an effective target for specific preventive and therapeutic measures for cryptosporidiosis.

Inhibition of krr1 gene expression in Giardia canis by a virus-mediated hammerhead ribozyme.

Giardia, a most primitive eukaryote, infects several species including human and it is a major agent of waterborne outbreak of diarrhea. It has been difficult to employ standard genetic methods in the study of Giardia, but the RNA virus-based transfection system has been developed and used for the genetic manipulation. KRR1 protein is responsible for ribosome biosynthesis in Giardia. In this study, cDNA encoding hammerhead ribozyme flanked with various lengths of antisense Krr1 RNA were cloned into a viral vector pGCV634/GFP/GCV2174 derived from the genome of Giardia canis virus (GCV). RNA transcripts of the plasmids showed high cleavage activities on Krr1 mRNA in vitro. They were electroporated into GCV-infected G. canis trophozoites and Krr1 mRNA level was decreased by 72% with the ribozyme KRzS and 86% with the ribozyme KRzL, while the control ribozyme TRzS showed no effect on the level of Krr1 mRNA. The two hammerhead ribozyme transfected cells grew slowly, their internal structures got blurred and the cells were deformed. These results indicated that GCV could be useful tool for gene manipulation of G. canis.