Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Detecting Ehrlichia canis DNA in Italian dogs using new PCR test
By Marsilio, Fulvio et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc·2006·Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Direct identification of Ehrlichia canis by a novel polymerase chain reaction method and molecular analysis of the citrate synthase (gltA) gene from various Italian strains.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Three dogs that tested positive for Ehrlichia canis, a tick-borne infection, had their blood examined using a new, sensitive testing method. This test successfully identified the DNA of the bacteria in three of the dogs. The researchers also sequenced a specific gene from two of these dogs, finding that it was very similar to a strain from Oklahoma. This study highlights the effectiveness of this new testing method for detecting Ehrlichia canis in dogs, which can help in diagnosing and treating the infection.
People also search for: dog Ehrlichia canis symptoms · tick-borne disease in dogs · how to treat Ehrlichia in dogs
Abstract
Fourteen blood samples collected from dogs that were seropositive for Ehrlichia canis were examined for the presence of the citrate synthase gene using a highly specific and sensitive novel polymerase chain reaction assay. The assay detected E. canis DNA in 3 dogs. The complete nucleotide sequence of the citrate synthase gene was determined in 2 of the test-positive samples, and represents the first sequence of the gene to be derived from Italian isolates. The sequence data displayed high identity (99.2%) between the geographically separated Italian samples and the Oklahoma strain of E. canis. The high-sequence conservation revealed by molecular analysis confirmed the usefulness of the citrate synthase gene as a target for detection of E. canis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16617707/