Investigation on protective effect of recombinant protein (OmpTS) of Aeromonas hydrophila in Common carp ( Cyprinus carpio )

The outer membrane protein of Aeromonas hydrophila is a potential candidate for vaccine development. In this study, after cloning and expression of ompTS, 270 common carp, weighing 44 ± 5.7 g divided into five groups, were injected intraperitoneally twice with 3‐week intervals. Groups included the following: PBS, PBS plus Freund's adjuvant, recombinant protein, recombinant protein plus Freund's adjuvant and 20 fish as negative control. Two weeks after the second injection, 30 fish of each group were challenged with a dose of 2 × LD50 of Aeromonas hydrophila and RPS was measured. The antibody level was measured using ELISA test. The protection of recombinant protein in the immunized fish with and without adjuvant, respectively, was about 82.61% and 78.26% (the protection of recombinant protein electroeluted from an SDS–PAGE with and without adjuvant, respectively, was about 78.62% and 69.57%). The average of antibody level in recombinant protein with and without adjuvant was significantly higher than the PBS group (p < .05). The ability of recombinant ompTS to increase the antibody level and to protect the fish from challenge by A. hydrophila demonstrated that recombinant ompTS protein injection can be used to immunize common carp against A. hydrophila infection

A serological survey on Brucella canis in companion dogs in Ahvaz.

Summary Canine brucellosis is a zoonotic infectious disease caused by Brucella canis. This bacterium can be transmitted to humans as well as other dogs. It is a significant cause of reproductive failure, predominantly in kennels. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of Brucella canis infection in companion dogs referred to the Veterinary Hospital of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz in the southwest of Iran. A total of 102 blood samples were obtained from dogs between 2006 and 2008. Sera were examined by Immunochromatography assay. The studied dogs were divided into two age groups (1-5 years and &gt;5 years) and based on clinical signs (related signs to brucellosis such as scrotum dermatitis, diskospondylitis, lymphadenitis, abortion and infertility) into two groups also. Prevalence to Brucella canis antibodies in these dogs was 4.90% (5 of 102). The infection had more prevalence in dogs above 5 years (9.3%; 4 of 43) in comparison with dogs less than 5 years (1.69%; 1 of 59), but the difference between the two age groups was not statistically significant (P&gt;0.05). There was no significant difference between the different sexes either (P&gt;0.05). Nevertheless, the difference for related signs to brucellosis was significant between the groups (P=0.018). Three out of 14 cases (21.4%) which had clinical signs and two out of 88 cases (2.3%) which had no clinical signs were seropositive. This study showed that antibody against Brucella canis is present among the companion dog population of the Ahvaz area and preventive measures should be taken to control pathogenic bacteria