RESUMEN
Cryptosporidiosis is a parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Cryptosporidium in vertebrates. In livestock, especially ruminants, infants develop diarrheal syndromes. The infection is common worldwide , including Iran, where it is reported in several species. Morphological diagnosis of Cryptosporidium species is associated with many limitations and has no taxonomic value on its own, so the use of molecular methods can overcome these limitations to some extent. The present aims at microscopic, molecular and antigen detection and isolation of Cryptosporidium parvum parasites. Firstly, 300 samples were collected from different parts of Iran. Subsequently oocysts from feces were purified by the method of Casemore et al. using the flotation technique and stained by the modified Ziehl-Neelsen method (Henriksen method) and identified by diagnostic keys. ELISA test was also performed on the samples with results ranging from 1 to 4 positive. The results of our study show that, of the 300 cases tested for Cryptosporidium, 48 cases (16%) and 54 (18%) were positive in ELISA and PCR, respectively. Microscopic evaluation also mainly confirmed the ELISA results. These cases were collected in summer, autumn, and winter, with, more than 50% of the positive cases found among the samples collected in autumn. In addition, 54 positive cases were found by PCR test, which is 6 cases more than ELISA results. Finally, the results of PCR detection and ELISA were subjected to chi-square analysis, where no significant difference was found between the collected data (p=0.0587).
Asunto(s)
Enfermedades de los Bovinos , Criptosporidiosis , Cryptosporidium parvum , Diarrea , Ensayo de Inmunoadsorción Enzimática , Criptosporidiosis/parasitología , Criptosporidiosis/epidemiología , Cryptosporidium parvum/aislamiento & purificación , Irán/epidemiología , Animales , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/parasitología , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/epidemiología , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/diagnóstico , Bovinos , Ensayo de Inmunoadsorción Enzimática/veterinaria , Diarrea/veterinaria , Diarrea/parasitología , Diarrea/epidemiología , Antígenos de Protozoos/análisis , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa/veterinaria , Heces/parasitologíaRESUMEN
Chlamydia pneumoniae is a common pathogen in the world often causing upper or lower respiratory tract infection and may also be linked to some chronic inflammatory diseases. Recent studies have shown that a high percentage of healthy blood donors harbour Chlamydia DNA and antigens. The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of this microorganism among blood donors. Blood samples were collected between November 2004 and March 2005 from 196 healthy blood donors. Ten millilitre of blood was collected in ethylenediaminetetraacetic (EDTA) tube. Reverse transcription of RNA was performed with Moloney murine leukaemia virus (MMLV) reverse transcriptase and random primers hexamer. Polymerase chain reaction products were evaluated by electrophoresis. Data were analysed using the chi(2) test and t-test. Of the 196 healthy blood donors, 7.1% were C. pneumoniae DNA positive (CI 95 % = 3.51- 10.69), which is slightly higher in female (8.5%) than male (6.5%) donors; this difference was not found to be significant (P = 0.4). The average age of study groups was 40.84 (SD +/- 10.80) years; significant association was not found between age groups and the presence of C. pneumoniae DNA. There was no significant differences between positive rate and first-time [37 (19.3%)] and repeat [155 (80.7%)] donors. C. pneumoniae DNA seems to be frequent in apparently healthy blood donors; therefore, it can be a threat for blood safety. But further studies are needed to evaluate the survival of C. pneumoniae in blood bank conditions and in blood recipients to define the clinical importance of such findings. Elimination of intracellular bacteria by filtration is an effective strategy for risk reduction.