Prevalence and molecular identification of Chlamydia abortus in commercial dairy goat farms in a hot region in Mexico

The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence and presence of Chlamydia abortus in Saanen breed female goats from commercial dairy goat farms under intensive production in the municipality of Guanajuato, Mexico. Sera were collected to determine the prevalence of anti-C. abortus IgG antibodies using recombinant enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (rELISA) and cell culture. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to prove the presence of the pathogen in swab samples collected from the vagina and rectum of selected animals. Additionally, foetal tissue samples from a sudden abortion were collected. C. abortus prevalence in female goats of commercial milking farms sampled in Guanajuato, Mexico, was 4.87 % (n=246). Seropositive animals were found in six out of nine (66.6 %) dairy goat farms sampled, and prevalence among animals in individual farms ranged between 3.44 and 13.51 %. C. abortus was detected using PCR in spleen tissue from the aborted foetus. PCR-based detection, as well as isolation from vaginal and rectal swabs, was not possible in the present study. Isolation through cell culture was also unsuccessful from aborted foetal tissue samples. In conclusion, the results from rELISA and PCR show that C. abortus is present in dairy goat farms in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico

Lipofection improves gene targeting efficiency in E14 TG2a mouse embryonic stem cells

Electroporation has been the method of election for transfection of murine embryonic stem cells for over 15 years; however, it is a time consuming protocol because it requires large amounts of DNA and cells, as well as expensive and delicate equipment. Lipofection is a transfection method that requires lower amounts of cells and DNA than electroporation, and has proven to be effi cient in a large number of cell lines. It has been shown that after lipofection, mouse embryonic stem cells remain pluripotent, capable of forming germ line chimeras and can be transfected with greater effi ciency than with electroporation; however, gene targeting of mouse embryonic stem cells by lipofection has not been reported. The objective of this work was to fi nd out if lipofection can be used as effi ciently as electroporation for regular gene targeting protocols. This context compares gene targeting effi ciency between these techniques in mouse embryonic stem cells E14TG2a, using a gene replacement type vector. No differences were found in gene targeting effi ciency between groups; however, lipofection was three times more effi cient than electroporation in transfection effi ciency, which makes lipofection a less expensive alternative method to produce gene targeting in mouse embryonic stem cells

Human Papillomavirus (HPV), minireview and collateral expected benefits of the vaccine.

Cervical neoplasia is the second leading cause of neoplastic death in Latin America. It is generally accepted that all cervical carcinomas have at least one high risk Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Due to the causal relationship of specific HPV types and cervical cancer and its role as precursor of skin lesions it is important to identify the involved genotype. HPV, as other tumor-viruses, induces oncogenesis by manipulating an array of different cellular pathways, which leads to immortalization and proliferation of the infected cells by disrupting the mitotic checkpoint upon infection of the host cell. Actually the role of the immune response in the development of cervical cancer is unknown as is the relationship between the type and level of expression of messenger RNA (mRNA) of interferon gamma (IFN-γ), transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1) and interleukin (IL)-4 in the cervical microenvironment within each of the stages of carcinogenesis with the HPV genotype causing the infection. An average annual cost to treat cervical cancer is U.S. $10,283 per patient. Taking into account the World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision, in ten years the accumulated cases of cervical cancer might be 3,286,534, thus making a total budget of U.S.$ 33,795.4 million to treat all women. Universal vaccination against HPV might result in extended benefits as the decrease in mouth and oropharynx cancers as well as the reduction in health cost for the attendance of several neoplasias

Síndrome reproductivo y respiratorio del cerdo (PRRS). Revisión

El síndrome reproductivo y respiratorio del cerdo (PRRS), es una enfermedad de origen viral que ocasiona fallas reproductivas severas en cerdas gestantes, con menos grado en la calidad del semen en verracos y problemas respiratorios en cerdos de todas las edades pero principalmente en lechones; también se asocia o incrementa la manifestación de otras enfermedades respiratorias. Es una de las enfermedades de mayor importancia económica mundial, en la mayoría de los países de producción de porcinos, donde en gran parte de ellos permanece endémico. El virus de PRRS (PRRSV) presenta un alto grado de mutabilidad, por lo que hay una gran diversidad genética de cepas del linaje norteamericano (PRRSV NA) y entre el PRRSV NA y el linaje europeo (PRRSV EU), lo que afecta la homogeneidad y poca o nula antigenicidad cruzada para vacunas; el virus vacunal modificado, único comercialmente accesible para generar algún grado confiable de inmunidad, ha mostrado la capacidad de revertirse a patógeno, con replicabilidad y recombinación con virus de campo; las vacunas sólo se utilizan para disminuir el grado de afección de la enfermedad; el virus muestra una capacidad de inmunosupresión e inmunoregulación que le permite, prolongar el tiempo de viremia en los animales enfermos, quienes eliminan el virus por saliva, secreciones tras placentarias, mamarias y muy posiblemente excremento, siendo la transmisión principal por contacto directo o por objetos contaminados; además presenta una posterior selectividad a pocos tejidos linfoides, que le permite permanecer inadvertido hasta que, en condiciones favorables, vuelve a manifestarse la enfermedad, ya sea como pequeños brotes, o como pandemia

Virus del síndrome reproductor y respiratorio porcino (PRRSV) en granjas porcinas tecnificadas del Estado de México

Se realizó un estudio transversal por conglomerados en una etapa, de abril a septiembre de 2011, en cerdos de más de 11 semanas de edad, de 11 granjas, para analizar la situación de PRRSV en granjas tecnificadas del Estado de México. Se colectaron muestras de suero (n=220) para ELISA y sangre (n=80) para transcripción en reversa y reacción en cadena de la polimerasa en tiempo real en un solo paso (RTqPCR) para PRRSV, e hisopos nasales (n= 425) para el aislamiento de posibles bacterias patógenas de la enfermedad del complejo respiratorio porcino (CRP). También se aplicó un cuestionario. ELISA mostró una seroprevalencia verdadera de 30.67 %, siendo mayor la probabilidad de ser seropositivos en granjas con antecedentes y calendario de vacunación y de ubicación urbana-semiurbana; los cerdos fueron seroreactivos en 7/11 granjas (63.63 %). RTqPCR mostró viremia en 2/80 (2.5 %) cerdos analizados, de 2/11 granjas (18.18 %); una cerda infectada con PRRSV norteamericano que mostró signos clínicos de la enfermedad y una cerda infectada con PRRSV europeo que no mostró ningún signo clínico evidente de infección. Dos granjas no mostraron cerdos seropositivos o virémicos, no tienen antecedentes ni calendario de vacunación y están ubicadas en una zona semirural. En todas las granjas se aisló Staphyloccus aureus y Streptococcus suis; en algunas granjas y con menos frecuencia Actinobacillus spp (4/11) y Pasteurella spp (3/11). Es el primer reporte en México de infección por PRRSV europeo