PCR-based detection of Bacillus anthracis in formalin-fixed tissue from a patient receiving ciprofloxacin

[Preparation and characterization of monoclonal antibodies to Bacillus anthracis protective antigen]

Anthrax is the widespread acute infection disease, affecting animals and humans, refers to the bioterrorist threat agents of category A, because of the high resistance of Bacillus anthracis spores to adverse environmental factors and the ease of receiving them. We obtain a representative panel of 20 monoclonal antibodies against the key component of pathogenic exotoxins, anthrax protective antigen. Quantitative sandwich-ELISA for protective antigen with antibody obtained was developed. Six pairs of monoclonal antibodies showed the detection limit up to 1 ng/ml concentration of the protective antigen in blood serum.

Detection of the bacterium Flavobacterium psychrophilum from a natural infection in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), using formalin-fixed, wax-embedded fish tissues

The bacterial pathogen Flavobacterium psychrophilum was successfully identified from formalin-fixed, wax-embedded tissue blocks of infected rainbow trout heart and spleen tissues, using a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based assay. Filamentous bacteria were observed in haematoxylin and eosin and Giemsa-stained sections but no bacteria were recovered from the diseased fish using standard bacteriology isolation techniques. All infected fish had histopathological evidence of myocarditis or rainbow trout fry syndrome. Immunohistochemistry was attempted using three different anti-F. psychrophilum sera but the results were inconclusive, and an alternative molecular approach was therefore attempted. This paper describes the use of a PCR-based assay to help identify bacteria present in formalin-fixed, wax-embedded tissue samples. This is the first time that this technique has been used for the detection of fish bacteria from diagnostic samples.

Rapid genotypic detection of Bacillus anthracis and the Bacillus cereus group by multiplex real-time PCR melting curve analysis

Bacillus anthracis has four plasmid possible virulence genotypes: pXO1+/pXO2+, pXO1+/pXO2-, pXO1-/pXO2+ or pXO1-/pXO2-. Due to the lack of a specific chromosomal marker for B. anthracis, differentiation of the pXO1-/pXO2- form of B. anthracis from closely related Bacillus cereus group species is difficult. In this study, we evaluate the ability of sspE, pXO1 and pXO2 primers to discriminate individual B. anthracis and the B. cereus group genotypes using multiplex real-time PCR and melting curve analysis. Optimal conditions for successful multiplex assays have been established. Purified DNAs from 38 bacterial strains including 11 strains of B. anthracis and 18 B. cereus group strains were analyzed. Nine of the B. cereus group near-neighbor strains were shown by multilocus sequence typing to be phylogenetically proximate to the B. anthracis clade. We have demonstrated that the four plasmid genotypes of B. anthracis and B. cereus group near-neighbors were differentially and simultaneously discriminated by this assay.