Polymerase chain reaction and real-time PCR for diagnosing of Leishmania infantum chagasi in dogs.
The importance of dogs as a reservoir for Leishmania infantumchagasi in urban environments has stimulated numerous studies assessing diagnostic techniques. When performed properly, such procedures are an important step in preventing leishmaniasis in humans. Molecular methods have become prominent for this purpose. The aim of the present study was to determine the performance of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and real-time PCR (qPCR) for diagnosing of canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) using different biological samples. For this, 35 dogs from an area endemic for CVL were used. Bone marrow aspirate and lymph node and spleen fragments from these dogs were used for the molecular diagnosis. In the present study, qPCR was able to detect a greater number of positive animals than seen with PCR. Among the different biological samples used, there was no significant difference in L. infantumchagasi DNA detection between PCR and qPCR. However, considering that lymph nodes are easy to acquire, these can be considered to be the best samples for making molecular diagnoses of L. infantum chagasi infection.
Laboratório de Doenças Parasitárias dos Animais Domésticos, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brasil. rafaelanramos@yahoo.com.br
Rafael Antonio do Nascimento
RA
Ramos
Carlos Alberto do Nascimento
CA
Ramos
Márcia Mariza Gomes
MM
Jusi
Flábio Ribeiro
FR
de Araújo
Rosangela Zacarias
RZ
Machado
Maria Aparecida da Glória
MA
Faustino
Leucio Câmara
LC
Alves
D000818:Animals; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000469:parasitology*; D004285:Dogs; D018314:Leishmania infantum; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction