Diagnosis and molecular characterization of natural cattle infections produced by Trypanosoma spp. in the Colombian Orinoco region

Because of the limitations of direct methods for the diagnosis of trypanosomes in small quantities, molecular methods which allow identification of the species with a small amount of parasite DNA were analyzed. A study was conducted at the Carimagua Experimental Station, located in the flat high plains of Orinoco Colombia. From 500 'Sanmartinero' and 'Zebú' breeding cattle, native to the area, 70 clinically healthy animals were randomly selected, to establish the presence of Trypanosoma spp. and to perform differential diagnosis between species. Blood samples were taken and linfocites were separated by the Buffy Coat technique. Seminested PCR was performed on the 18S rDNA region. RFLP was run on the obtained products and a comparison with international standards was made. Five samples were positive for Trypanosoma spp. by PCR. One of them corresponded to T. vivax and four to T. theileri. The results obtained estimate a prevalence of 7.14% in apparently healthy animals, otherwise not detected by traditional direct tests currently in use. This poses a potential problem for cattle in the area, given the chance of developing clinical symptoms of the disease and the likelihood of transmission to susceptible animals. Having methods to detect presence of the species Trypanosoma spp., also permits better management and understanding of the field problem. The methods described are the first molecular approach to study Trypanosoma spp. in cattle in the Colombian Orinoco region and highlight the importance of diagnosis of the disease.   

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Cassalett B., Elizabeth Regina, V., Victor Julio, Parra A., Jorge Luis, Baldrich F., Rita Mercedes
Format:	info:eu-repo/semantics/article biblioteca
Language:	spa
Published:	Corporación Colombiana de Investigación Agropecuaria (Agrosavia) 2010
Subjects:	Ganadería - L01, Ganado bovino, Trypanosoma, Enfermedades de los animales, Infecciones latentes, Ganadería y especies menores,
Online Access:	http://revista.corpoica.org.co/index.php/revista/article/view/218 http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12324/33880
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