Detection of Toxoplasma gondii in Raw Caprine, Ovine, Buffalo, Bovine, and Camel Milk Using Cell Cultivation, Cat Bioassay, Capture ELISA, and PCR Methods in Iran

This study was conducted to determine the presence of Toxoplasma gondii in animal milk samples in Iran. From a total of 395 dairy herds in three provinces of Iran, 66 bovine, 58 ovine, 54 caprine, 33 buffalo, and 30 camel herds were studied, and from these parts of Iran, 200 bovine, 185 ovine, 180 caprine, 164 buffalo, and 160 camel milk samples were collected from various seasons. Samples were tested for Toxoplasma gondii by cell line culture, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. Only the results of cell line cultivation were confirmed by bioassay in cat. Results indicated that all herds were infected with Toxoplasma gondii. The culture method showed that 51 out of 889 milk samples (5.73%) were positive for Toxoplasma gondii, and all 51 positive culture results were positive with bioassay in cat. The Fars province had the highest prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii (6.84%). The ELISA test showed that 41 milk samples (4.61%) were positive for the presence of Toxoplasma gondii, while the PCR showed that 46 milk samples were positive for Toxoplasma gondii. The results showed higher sensitivity of PCR and higher specificity of ELISA. Caprine had the highest (10%) and camel had the lowest (3.12%) prevalence rate of parasite. The summer season had the highest (76.47%) but winter (3.92) had the lowest incidence of Toxoplasma gondii. This study is the first prevalence report of direct detection of Toxoplasma gondii in animal milk samples in Iran

Prevalence study of Vibrio species and frequency of the virulence genes of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated from fresh and salted shrimps in Genaveh seaport

Vibrio species are important seafood-borne pathogens that are responsible for 50-70% of gasteroenteritis. The present study was carried out in order to determine the prevalence of Vibrio species and the distribution of tdh, tlh and trh virulence genes in Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated from fresh and salted shrimp samples. Totally, 60 fresh and salted shrimp samples were collected from the Genaveh seaport. Microbial culture was used to isolate Vibrio species. In addition, the presences of Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Vibrio cholera, Vibrio vulnificus and Vibrio harveyi and the virulence genes of V. parahaemolyticus were studied using the PCR method. Results showed that 20% of fresh and 23.33% of salted shrimp samples were positive for Vibrio species. In studied samples, V. vulnificus had the highest prevalence rate (8.33%), while V. cholera had the lowest prevalence rate (1.66%). From a total of 4 detected V. parahaemolyticus, all of them had tlh gene (100%). The distribution of tdh and trh genes in isolated V. parahaemolyticus strains were 50% and 25%, respectively. High prevalence of Vibrio species and especially virulent V. parahaemolyticus in samples confirmed the lack of hygienic condition in the production and distribution centers of shrimp

Detection of classical enterotoxins of Staphylococcus aureus isolates from chicken nugget and ready to eat foods in Esfahan province by ELISA technique

This study was conducted to detect the classical enterotoxins of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from chicken nugget and ready-to-eat foods in Esfahan province by ELISA technique. During summer 2012, a total number of 420 chicken nuggets was collected randomly from retails of Esfahan province. The samples were subjected to bacteriological examinations. The isolates were analyzed for the production of enterotoxins using ELISA techniques. The ability to synthesize Staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) was determined in 20 of 24 (83.3%) isolates, which SEA was the most common (40%) enterotoxin found in the isolates. Afterwards, SEC (15%) and SED (10%) were the most detected enterotoxins. Amongst, three strains were able to synthesize both of the SEA and SED and three isolates were able to synthesize both of SEA and SEC. However, no isolate was able to produced SEE. Results showed that chicken nugget and ready-to-eat foods can potentially be a source of staphylococcal food poisoning. Therefore, it is important to study the prevalence of enterotoxigenic S. aureus in the other food types