Animal disease agents transmitted by horse flies and deer flies (Diptera: Tabanidae).
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The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect Anaplasma marginale in hemolymph collected from live Dermacentor andersoni Stiles ticks. Hemolymph was collected from severed legs of male and female ticks exposed to A. marginale as either nymphs or adults. Heat treatment was found to be the optimum method of hemolymph preparation for PCR. Hemolymph samples were collected and pooled from adult ticks exposed as nymphs on days 0-10 of feeding on a susceptible calf. For male and female ticks exposed as adults, samples were collected as ticks fed 7 d on an infected calf, while being held 9 d between feedings, and during a second feeding of 10 d (or to repletion) when they transmitted the parasite. Hemolymph samples were collected from uninfected ticks at the same times to serve as controls. Anaplasma marginale DNA was amplified with primers BAP-2 (5'-GTATGGCACGTAGTCTTGGGATCA-3') and AL34S (5'-CAGCAGCAGCAAGACCTTCA-3'), which flank a 409-bp fragment of the A. marginale Florida isolate msp1 beta gene. Infected tick hemolymph was PCR-positive for A. marginale at all collection times, including unfed adults infected as nymphs and previously unexposed adults that fed on infected calves for only 1 d. The PCR-based assay of tick hemolymph proved to be a sensitive method for identification of infected ticks, potentially without killing them; it would be well suited for identification of laboratory- or field-infected ticks that could then be used for further studies. The primers used in this assay were also found specific when tested with species of 18 different genera, and universal for 7 A. marginale isolates from diverse geographical areas of the United States.
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect Anaplasma marginale in secretagogue-induced oral secretions of male and female Dermacentor andersoni Stiles exposed as nymphs or adults by feeding on infected calves. A 409-bp DNA fragment derived from the A. marginale (Florida isolate) msp1 beta gene was amplified with oligonucleotide primers BAP-2 (5'-GTATGGCACGTAGTCTTGGGATCA-3') and AL34S (5'-CAGCAGCAGCAAGACCTTCA-3'). The target DNA was amplified in oral secretions of female ticks exposed to A. marginale as adults and stimulated to secrete by injection of dopamine. Conversely, A. marginale was detected in saliva from prefed female ticks exposed as nymphs only after stimulation with a combination of dopamine, gamma-aminobutyric acid, pilocarpine, and theophylline. Saliva from ticks exposed as nymphs and stimulated with ergot alkaloids did not contain the A. marginale target DNA. Saliva collected after 11 d of feeding from dopamine-stimulated male ticks contained A. marginale DNA. The results indicate that A. marginale is present in tick saliva and suggest that the parasite can be transmitted to cattle via saliva of feeding ixodid ticks. The variable appearance of A. marginale in saliva, regardless of the method used to induce salivation, suggests that transmission of A. marginale may be affected by the physiological state of the tick.
Anaplasma marginale is a rickettsial parasite of bovine erythrocytes causing world-wide economic losses in livestock production. Despite its importance, little is known about this rickettsia at a molecular level because it has not been cultured in vitro, and there is no small-animal model. Although several genes have been cloned and sequenced, the gross genome structure of the organism has not yet been well characterized. We separated intact bovine erythrocytes from leucocytes, and determined the genome size of A. marginale by use of restriction endonuclease cleavage and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). A value of 56 mol% G+C was obtained for this genome by spectral analysis. Undigested A. marginale DNA failed to migrate under several different electrophoretic conditions, indicating a circular genome. Digestions of intact A. marginale DNA were performed using restriction endonucleases NotI, SfiI and PacI. Complete digestion with SfiI resulted in 12 distinct bands ranging in size from 14 to 170 kbp. Total size determined by addition of SfiI-digested fragments was approximately 1200 kbp. PacI cleaved the A. marginale genome from three different isolates into just three fragments, of 598, 557 and 97 kbp. Incomplete digestion produced a band measuring 1250 kbp. These results indicate that A. marginale has a circular genome between 1200 and 1260 kbp, with a G+C content of 56 mol%.
Bacterial pathogens in the genus Anaplasma generate surface coat variants by gene conversion of chromosomal pseudogenes into single-expression sites. These pseudogenes encode unique surface-exposed hypervariable regions flanked by conserved domains, which are identical to the expression site flanking domains. In addition, Anaplasma marginale generates variants by recombination of oligonucleotide segments derived from the pseudogenes into the existing expression site copy, resulting in a combinatorial increase in variant diversity. Using the A. marginale genome sequence to track the origin of sequences recombined into the msp2 expression site, we demonstrated that the complexity of the expressed msp2 increases during infection, reflecting a shift from recombination of the complete hypervariable region of a given pseudogene to complex mosaics with segments derived from hypervariable regions of different pseudogenes. Examination of the complete set of 1183 variants with segmental changes revealed that 99% could be explained by one of the recombination sites occurring in the conserved flanking domains and the other within the hypervariable region. Consequently, we propose an 'anchoring' model for segmental gene conversion whereby the conserved flanking sequences tightly align and anchor the expression site sequence to the pseudogene. Associated with the recombination sites were deletions, insertions and substitutions; however, these are a relatively minor contribution to variant generation as these occurred in less than 2% of the variants. Importantly, the anchoring model, which can account for more variants than a strict segmental sequence identity mechanism, is consistent with the number of msp2 variants predicted and empirically identified during persistent infection.
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This paper reports the first genetic characterization of Anaplasma (Ehrlichia) platys in Spain from a naturally infected dog. The dog presented clinical signs compatible with canine ehrlichiosis. After DNA extraction and PCR amplification, 16S rRNA gene and citrate synthase gene ( gltA) of this agent were amplified. The GenBank accession number for the nucleotide sequence of the 16S rRNA gene of this strain is AY530806. The A. platys strains registered in France and Japan showed the highest similarity to the 16S rRNA gene sequence obtained from the Spanish strain. In the amplification of the gltA gene, a 1443 bp fragment was obtained, and three nucleotide differences were detected in comparison with other strains sequences. These data confirm the presence of A. platys in a dog showing clinical signs compatible with ehrlichiosis in Spain.
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The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of light microscopy (LM) examination of blood smears and a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (MPCR) assay, in terms of their ability to detect cattle experimentally infected with Babesia bovis, Babesia bigemina, and Anaplasma marginale. Blood samples were collected from 32 intact, 1-2 year old, Holstein bulls, previous to and after simultaneous inoculation of culture-derived or field isolates of B. bovis- and B. bigemina-infected erythrocytes. To establish the triple hemoparasite infection, 16 of the bulls were also inoculated with a calf-derived isolate of A. marginale. The results showed that both tests had 100% specificity. In contrast, the sensitivities of the MPCR assay against the LM test were 93.5% and 70.9%; 96.7% and 100%; and 93.8% and 93.8% for B. bovis, B. bigemina, and A. marginale infection, respectively. The advantages and disadvantages of the MPCR assay to differentially diagnose cattle with multiple hemoparasite infection are discussed.
Although Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana share borders and climatic and geographic similarities, the countries have maintained little contact, due to language, political, and administrative differences. In 1993, two international organizations involved in the improvement of animal health, the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and CIRAD-EMVT (Centre de Cooperation Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement-Elevage et Medecine Veterinaire des Pays Tropicaux), jointly developed a collaborative project between the veterinary services of the three countries entitled "Hemoparasite Network for the Guianas." This project seeks to pool livestock, laboratory, and technical resources between the three countries in order to generate and exchange information on hemoparasites of livestock. A Hemoparasite Reference Laboratory for the Guianas has been created at the CIRAD-EMVT laboratory in Cayenne, French Guiana. Besides processing ruminant serum samples from the three countries, specialists from this organization conduct training in hemoparasite diagnostic techniques for laboratory personnel from Guyana and Suriname. A large-scale epidemiologic study of hemoparasites of cattle in the three countries is under way, to determine the prevalence, distribution, and clinical and economic significance of hemoparasites in the three countries, particularly Trypanosoma vivax and T. evansi. Preliminary results are presented and discussed. A Hemoparasite Information Network (TRYPNET) has been initiated, including a quarterly hemoparasite newsletter (TRYPNEWS), published in English and Spanish and disseminated to researchers in the Americas, Europe, and Africa. In 1995/96, it is proposed to expand the network's scope to include Venezuela and Brazil.
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A prospective study was conducted to assess the dynamics of the infection and host response to Anaplasma marginale in one closed herd in the dry tropical forest of Costa Rica. The study subjects were the dams and their calves born during 1 breeding season (1995-1996). All cows were sampled at 3 month intervals for antibody detection using a competitive ELISA (cELISA) and for antigen detection using PCR/nonradioactive probe assay. All 24 calves born during the study were individually identified at birth and subsequently sampled each month for PCR and cELISA. Ticks were identified from all animals throughout the entire study period. The results from this study confirmed that the cELISA is a reliable assay for identifying new and carrier infections and that carrier infections can exist at levels below that detectable by PCR. In addition, it was demonstrated that calves born in this region will most likely be exposed to Anaplasma within the first 6 months of age.
Anaplasma marginale has been propagated and continuously passaged in an Ixodes scapularis cell line. Anaplasma development was characterized and cultures with a high density of rickettsiae were harvested at a predictable rate. Culture-derived A. marginale (CAM) remained infective for cattle and was used effectively as antigen in diagnostic tests with the sensitivity to identify bovine carriers of A. marginale. This study presents results of an initial trial using the CAM as an immunogen for cattle. CAM was mechanically disrupted, frozen at -70 degrees C, and inactivated with beta-propiolactone. Two intact yearling cattle were immunized with CAM and Freund's adjuvant, receiving 4 subcutaneous injections at 3-4 week intervals. Two control yearling cattle received adjuvant and PBS. Serum samples were evaluated by competitive ELISA (C-ELISA) using CAM as antigen and the standard complement fixation test (CFT). All cattle were subsequently challenged with A. marginale-infected blood from a carrier cow. An additional intact calf was inoculated with live CAM from the same passage and screened by C-ELISA and CFT. Sera collected from immunized cattle were negative or suspicious by CFT throughout the immunization study. The same sera were strongly positive by C-ELISA two weeks after the first injection and throughout the study. All cattle became infected following challenge-exposure with blood, but immunized cattle exhibited longer prepatent periods as well as lower parasitemias and percent reduction of packed cell volumes as compared with the controls. The calf receiving live CAM became infected and underwent a mild clinical reaction with positive C-ELISA and CFT results and did not become clinically ill following blood challenge. This preliminary study suggests that the CAM antigen is highly immunogenic in cattle. Furthermore, the CFT did not identify immunized animals whereas the C-ELISA (using CAM) was highly sensitive for detection of both immunized and infected animals.