title: Establishment of a quantitative real-time PCR for the detection of Pneumocystis carinii f. sp. suis in bronchoalveolar lavage samples from pigs.
abstract: Respiratory diseases in pigs are mostly polymicrobial, and the involved pathogens can vary from farm to farm. The impact of Pneumocystis carinii (P. c.) f. sp. suis on respiratory disorders has not been comprehensively appraised because tests were limited to lung tissue samples and, for this reason, it was not possible to detect the fungus in living animals. In the present study, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from 12 pigs and oral fluid samples from 9 pigs were tested for the presence of Pneumocystis by quantitative real-time PCR. The results from these 2 clinical specimens were compared with Pneumocystis quantities in lung tissue samples. Pneumocystis quantities in BALF correlated significantly to those in lung tissue. BALF has proved to be an adequate specimen for detection of various respiratory pathogens in pigs, and the collection procedure directly on farms is also well established. In contrast to the BALF results, all oral fluid samples were negative. Thus, specimens from the lower respiratory tract should generally be preferred for the detection of Pneumocystis Additionally, under farm conditions, oral fluid is mainly collected in the form of collective samples per pen. In the present study, oral swab sampling of individual pigs was intended but failed in 3 of 12 pigs because they did not salivate sufficiently. As a conclusion, only BALF can be recommended as a useful tool for Pneumocystis herd monitoring in vivo.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine (Weissenbacher-Lang, Nedorost, Weissenböck), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, AustriaUniversity Clinic for Swine (Knecht, Hennig-Pauka), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria christiane.weissenbacher-lang@vetmeduni.ac.at.
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Weissenbacher-Lang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine (Weissenbacher-Lang, Nedorost, Weissenböck), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, AustriaUniversity Clinic for Swine (Knecht, Hennig-Pauka), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Nora
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nedorost
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine (Weissenbacher-Lang, Nedorost, Weissenböck), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, AustriaUniversity Clinic for Swine (Knecht, Hennig-Pauka), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Knecht
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine (Weissenbacher-Lang, Nedorost, Weissenböck), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, AustriaUniversity Clinic for Swine (Knecht, Hennig-Pauka), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hennig-Pauka
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine (Weissenbacher-Lang, Nedorost, Weissenböck), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, AustriaUniversity Clinic for Swine (Knecht, Hennig-Pauka), University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Herbert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Weissenböck
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / Q000382:microbiology; D045363:Pneumocystis carinii / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D011020:Pneumonia, Pneumocystis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary*; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology
keywords: Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid; Pneumocystis carinii f. sp. suis; oral fluid; pigs; quantitative real-time PCR