Jaiswal V, Brar APS, Sandhu BS, Singla LD, Narang D, Leishangthem GD, Kaur P. Comparative evaluation of various diagnostic techniques for detection of
Cryptosporidium infection from the faecal samples of diarrhoeic bovine calves.
IRANIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY RESEARCH 2022;
23:247-254. [PMID:
36425600 PMCID:
PMC9681974 DOI:
10.22099/ijvr.2022.42714.6204]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2022] [Revised: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Cryptosporidium, an opportunistic, zoonotic, apicomplexan parasite, is one of the most common causes of diarrhea in neonatal bovine calves around the globe. Bovine calves act as a major source of infection by excreting huge numbers of highly resistant oocysts in faeces, which can survive for a long time in extreme environmental conditions. As low as ten oocysts can cause disease and mortality, leading to the requirement of an early and accurate diagnosis for proper and favorable prognosis, management, and control.
AIMS
The current study was conducted with the objective to evaluate various diagnostic techniques (acid fast staining, negative staining, fluorescent, ELISA, PCR, nested PCR, and qPCR) for the detection of Cryptosporidium in the faecal samples of diarrheic bovine calves.
METHODS
Two hundred diarrheic faecal samples from bovine calves were collected and subjected to these techniques for Cryptosporidium diagnosis. Results of these were evaluated for diagnostic comparison.
RESULTS
Out of 200 faecal samples evaluated, 24% (48/200) were detected positive for Cryptosporidium using a combination of two techniques as gold standard criteria. Cohen's kappa value indicated moderate to almost perfect agreement (0.616 to 0.986) among all the techniques used in the present study. Leishman staining showed the lowest sensitivity (54.17%), while nested PCR and qPCR showed the highest sensitivity (97.92%). Diagnostic specificity of all these tests ranged from 98.68 to 100%.
CONCLUSION
Auramine stain was used for the first time in the bovine calves in India for the detection and diagnostic comparison of Cryptosporidium. It showed strong agreement with the molecular as well as classical diagnostic techniques, and can be used for primary screening for better diagnosis.
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