Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Best blood sample types for PCR diagnosis of ehrlichiosis
By Rotondano, Tereza Emmanuelle de Farias et al.·Published in TheScientificWorldJournal·2012·Departamento de Ciê, Brazil·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: An assessment of whole blood and fractions by nested PCR as a DNA source for diagnosing canine ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A dog in Brazil was diagnosed with two tick-borne diseases, ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis, which can affect the blood. Researchers tested different blood samples to see which type was best for detecting the bacteria causing these infections. They found that whole blood was the most effective source for testing, while other blood fractions were less reliable. This study highlights the importance of using whole blood for accurate diagnosis of these diseases in dogs.
People also search for: dog ehrlichiosis symptoms · anaplasmosis treatment for dogs · tick-borne diseases in dogs
Abstract
Ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis are tick-borne diseases. Ehrlichia canis and Anaplasma platys infect mainly white cells and platelets, respectively. The main DNA source for PCR is peripheral blood, but the potential of blood cell fractions has not been extensively investigated. This study aims at assessment of whole blood (WB) and blood fractions potential in nested PCR (nPCR) to diagnose canine ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis. The 16S rRNA gene was amplified in 71.4, 17.8, 31.57, and 30% of the WB, granulocyte (G), mononuclear cells (M), and buffy coat (BC) samples. Compared to the WB, the sensitivity of the PCR was 42.86% for the M, and BC fractions, 21.43% for the G, and 33.33% for the blood clot (C). There was fair agreement between the WB and M, BC and C, and slight with the G. Fair agreement occurred between the nPCR and morulae in the blood smear. One animal was coinfected with A. platys and E. canis. This study provided the first evidence of A. platys infection in dogs in Paraíba, Brazil, and demonstrated that WB is a better DNA source than blood fractions to detect Ehrlichia and Anaplasma by nPCR, probably because of the plasma bacterial concentration following host cell lysis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22973174/