title: Molecular characterization of babesia bovis strains using PCR restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the msa2-a/b genes.
abstract: The merozoite surface antigen-2 (msa-2) family of Babesia bovis is a group of variable genes that share conserved 5' and 3' ends and encode for membrane-anchored glycoproteins that have been postulated as vaccine candidates. In this work, we analyzed the sequences of three of these genes (msa-2a1, a2, and 2b) from two geographically distant strains and detected a certain degree of genotypic diversity that could be exploited to work out new molecular tools for the discrimination of B. bovis field samples. Here we describe a PCR restriction assay that was developed based on this observation and tested on several B. bovis strains and isolates. The results show a strain-specific band pattern in geographically distant isolates, indicating the presence of differentially located BspMI restriction sites. This approach provides a simple method for the differentiation of American B. bovis strains.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Castelar, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
authors.forename: Silvina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wilkowsky
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Farber
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gil
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Echaide
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mosqueda
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alcaraz
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Suarez
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Florin-Christensen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016793:Babesia bovis / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D017125:Genes, Protozoan; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers