title: Analysis of antibody responses by commercial western blot assay in horses with alveolar echinococcosis.
abstract: Commercial western blot (WB) assay was used to detect serum antibodies specific to Echinococcus multilocularis in 23 horses in which infection was confirmed by postmortem inspection at a slaughterhouse. Livers contained from 1 to >20 nodular lesions; foci diameter ranged from 1 to 25 mm. Antibody tests of serum from all 23 animals were negative for antigen bands at 7, 16, 18, and 26-28 kDa, which show specificity in the serum of human patients. However, sera from two infected horses with the largest nodules (diameter, 25 mm) showed positive response to one of the 22-kDa and 30-kDa antigen bands. It may be possible to diagnose E. multilocularis infection in horses based on the detection of these bands on commercial WB assay.
authors.affiliation: Yamagata Prefectural Nairiku Meat Inspection Center, Yamagata 990-0892, Japan.
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ueno
authors.forename: Nobuhiko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kuroda
authors.forename: Kazue
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yahagi
authors.forename: Toshihiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohtaki
authors.forename: Masanori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kawanaka
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000909:Antibodies, Helminth / Q000097:blood*; D015153:Blotting, Western / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D004443:Echinococcosis; D004444:Echinococcosis, Hepatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000662:veterinary*; D048210:Echinococcus multilocularis / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D006736:Horses; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D000909:Antibodies, Helminth