Detection Of Trichinella Infection Research Articles

Trichinella britovi in a leopard ( Panthera pardus saxicolor) in Iran

Nematodes of the genus Trichinella are zoonotic parasites with a cosmopolitan distribution. In Iran, these parasites have mainly been detected in carnivorous mammals, yet information on the Trichinella taxa circulating in this country date back to a time when biochemical and molecular tests were not available. We describe the first detection of Trichinella larvae in a leopard ( Panthera pardus saxicolor) in Asia and its identification at the species level. The larvae recovered from the leopard muscles were identified as Trichinella britovi using multiplex PCR. The detection of Trichinella infection in a leopard confirms literature data on the high prevalence of infection in carnivorous mammals in Iran.

Detection of Trichinella infection in food animals

The first part of this review article deals with classical methods used for the detection of Trichinella larvae in muscle samples of those animal species which are recognized as traditional sources of trichinellosis for human beings, as well as those species which are important for epidemiological reasons. Special consideration is given to the main applications of these methods (routine slaughter inspection, and epidemiological studies in reservoir animals), and to the major factors that may influence detection methods (sampling site, sample size). Historical, current and future aspects concerning national and EU legislation for Trichinella inspection are also presented.The latter part of this review is directed at serodiagnostic methods for the detection of Trichinella-specific antibodies in different animal species. Classical methods of serodiagnosis such as the complement fixation test and immunofluorescence antibody test are reviewed and the characteristics and performance of the ELISA are discussed. Factors dependent upon the animal species being tested or on components of the ELISA test system are considered. This paper also reviews systematic development of the ELISA in relation to improvements in test specificity and sensitivity. Additionally, remarks are made on implementing this test for surveillance and control programs in domestic pigs and wildlife.

Detection of Trichinella infection in slaughter horses by ELISA and western blot analysis

In order to determine the presence of Trichinella infections in horses slaughtered at an abattoir in Mexico, 147 serum samples were examined by two immunoenzymatic methods. Specific antibodies were detected by ELISA in 7% of the serum samples at a dilution 1:400 and in 10% at lower dilutions (1:20, 1:40) using Trichinella spiralis muscle larvae (ML) excretory/secretory (E/S) products. Serum samples from four naturally infected horses (confirmed by direct methods) gave negative O.D. values in an ELISA at a 1:400 dilution and only two of them were positive at a 1:20 and 1:40 dilutions. Serum samples from experimentally infected horses reacted by Western blotting with ML components with molecular weights of 47, 52, 59, 67, 72 and 105 kDa which correspond to the TSL-1 antigens. Serum samples from the four naturally infected horses and from the abattoir horses that were positive in ELISA using E/S antigens recognized several ML components, some of them reacted with all the TSL-1 antigens mentioned above and others recognized preferentially two or three of these molecules. Since the serologic assays may not offer the sensitivity required in the diagnosis of horses trichinellosis and the direct methods had not always been useful in the detection of larvae in horsemeat related to trichinellosis outbreaks in Europe, it is proposed that additional assays are performed to determine Trichinella infection in horses. These can include detection of parasite antigens by ELISA and Dot ELISA or PCR, which in turn may also help to determine the presence of the parasite in early and late infections of horses.