Naderbandi M, Zibaei M, Haniloo A, Firoozeh F, Hatami Z, Shokri E, Taira K. Larva migrans in BALB/c mice experimentally infected with Toxocara cati ensured by PCR assay.
BMC Vet Res 2022;
18:257. [PMID:
35791007 PMCID:
PMC9254581 DOI:
10.1186/s12917-022-03366-6]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Toxocara cati, the cat roundworm, is a parasitic nematode that known to cause toxocariasis in intermediate hosts and humans. In this study, we characterized the dynamics of T. cati larvae migration in BALB/c mice after inoculation with eggs and ensured the migration detecting the larval DNA by a PCR. To evaluate the dynamics of larval migration and distribution, twenty-four BALB/c mice were orally inoculated with 2500 T. cati infective eggs and the visceral organs of the infected animals were examined by pepsin digestion and microscopic parasite counts, followed by PCR at day 1 to 28 post-inoculation.
RESULTS
The PCR assays were successfully used for detection of T. cati larvae in tissue samples and T. cati larvae and the DNAs were found in the liver, lungs, heart, kidneys and the brain. We detected T. cati in 92.2% of tissue samples by PCR, 30% higher than the conventional pepsin digestion technique.
CONCLUSION
Our findings demonstrated that the PCR assay is a sensitive and specific for the detection of T. cati larvae. Therefore, it could become a useful tool for the investigation of the dynamics of larval migration and Toxocara infection in murine model.
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