A survey of gastro-intestinal parasites was conducted on faecal samples collected from 379 feral cats and 851 native fauna from 16 locations throughout Western Australia. The prevalence of each parasite species detected varied depending upon the sampling location. Common helminth parasites detected in feral cats included Ancylostoma spp. (29.8%), Oncicola pomatostomi (25.6%), Spirometra erinaceieuropaei (14%), Taenia taeniaeformis (4.7%), Physaloptera praeputialis (3.7%) and Toxocara cati (2.6%). The most common protozoan parasites detected in feral cats were Isospora rivolta (16.9%) and I. felis (4.5%). The native mammals were predominately infected with unidentified nematodes of the order Strongylida (59.1%), with members of the orders Rhabditida, Spirurida and Oxyurida also common. Oxyuroid nematodes were most common in the rodents (47.9%) and western grey kangaroos (27.8%). Several species of Eimeria were detected in the marsupials whilst unidentified species of Entamoeba and coccidia were common in most of the native fauna. Primers anchored in the first and second internal transcribed spacers (ITS1 and ITS2) of the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) were used to develop a polymerase chain reaction-linked restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) technique to differentiate the species of Ancylostoma detected in feral cats. Amplification of the ITS+ region (ITS1, ITS2 and 5.8S gene) followed by digestion with the endonuclease RsaI produced characteristic patterns for A. tubaeforme, A. ceylanicum and A. caninum, which were detected in 26.6%, 4.7% and 0% of feral cats respectively. Giardia was detected in a cat, dingo, quenda and two native rodents. Sequence analysis at the small subunit rDNA gene (SSU-rDNA) identified the cat and dingo as harbouring G.duodenalis infections belonging to the genetic assemblages A and D respectively. Subsequent analysis of the SSU-rDNA and elongation factor 1 alpha (ef1á) identified a novel species of Giardia occurring in the quenda. Attempts to genetically characterise the Giardia in the two native rodents were unsuccessful. Serological detection of Toxoplasma gondii was compared to a one tube hemi-nested PCR protocol to evaluate its sensitivity. PCR was comparable to serology in detecting T. gondii infections, although PCR was a much more definitive and robust technique than serology for large numbers of samples. Amplification of T. gondii DNA detected infections in 4.9% of feral cats and 6.5% of native mammals. The distribution of T. gondii does not appear to be restricted by environmental factors, which implies that vertical transmission is important for the persistence of T. gondii infections in Western Australia. These results demonstrate that cats carry a wide range of parasitic organisms, many of which may influence the survival and reproduction of native mammals. As such, the large-scale conservation and reintroduction of native fauna in Western Australia must not disregard the potential influence parasites can have on these populations.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T15:04:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo4510_1.pdf: 1312401 bytes, checksum: 103b70bf03d8851fef2766e8bd0290f9 (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2004 / Paracoccidioides brasiliensis é um fungo dimórfico e agente etiológico da paracoccidioidomicose, uma micose sistêmica de evolução aguda ou crônica que se não diagnosticada e tratada a tempo pode ser fatal. Um método molecular para caracterização e detecção de P. brasiliensis foi desenvolvido a partir da clonagem e do sequenciamento de um fragmento de DNA de ~750 pb, obtido por RAPD (Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA), presente em isolados virulentos e ausente em isolados avirulentos deste fungo. Uma região interna do fragmento de DNA seqüenciado foi usada para desenhar primers que posteriormente foram utilizados em uma reação de hemi-nested PCR em tubo único. A reação de PCR específica foi capaz de amplificar DNA de três isolados de P. brasiliensis reconhecidamente virulentos e três isolados recentemente obtidos de pacientes com paracoccidioidomicose. A especificidade desta PCR foi confirmada pela ausência de produtos amplificados com DNA genômico de isolados de Histoplasma capsulatum, Blastomyces dermatitidis, Coccidioides immitis, Sporothrix schenckii, Cryptococcus neoformans, Candida albicans, Aspergillus fumigatus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Leishmania braziliensis, Trypanosoma cruzi, Schistosoma mansoni, DNA genômico humano (leucócitos) e de isolados de P. brasiliensis reconhecidamente avirulentas. A amplificação de cDNA de um isolado virulento sugere tratar-se de um gene expresso. A detecção específica de isolados virulentos de P. brasiliensis sugere ser este um candidato a marcador de virulência para este fungo. O potencial diagnóstico da PCR específica foi verificado com DNA extraído de aspirado de linfonodo de um paciente com paracoccidioidomicose

A Bronquite Infecciosa das Aves (BIG) é uma das doenças respiratórias aviárias de maior impacto na avicultura mundial. No Brasil, as estirpes BR-I (GI-11) e Massachusetts (GI-1) são as mais prevalentes nos planteis avícolas. O presente estudo teve como objetivos desenvolver reações de semi-nested PCR para o diagnóstico das estirpes BR-I e Mass, em amostras brasileiras obtidas durante o período de 2016 e 2017. Foram desenvolvidas duas reações de semi-nested PCR tendo como alvo a subunidade 1 do gene S, específicas para as estirpes BR-I e Mass. O limiar de detecção foi de 104 cópias de DNA/µL nas duas reações (3,76fg/µL na reação exclusiva de BR-I; e 5,58fg/µL e 5,57fg/µL na reação duplex de BR-I e Mass, respectivamente). Posteriormente, foram avaliados 572 pools de órgãos procedentes das 5 regiões do Brasil. Dentre estas amostras, 62,24% foram positivas para Coronavírus, sendo o alvo desta reação a região 3UTR. A reação de semi-nested PCR específica detectou a estirpe BR-I em 84,83% das amostras positivas para Coronavírus. A reação de semi-nested PCR duplex detectou 65,44% das amostras positivas para a estirpe BR-I; 7,35% positivas para a estirpe Mass e co-infecção da estirpe BR-I com Mass em 17,65% das amostras. Após a análise dos controles positivos (vacinas Mass e BR-I) no BLASTn, do resultado do sequenciamento dos produtos de PCR, da análise filogenética, da similaridade de nucleotídeos e a dedução em aminoácidos, foi confirmado o agrupamento esperado das sequências detectadas pelas reações PCR dirigidas para a estirpe BR-I ou Mass. Estes resultados confirmaram a presença predominante da estirpe BR-I, e em menor número, da estirpe Mass nos planteis avícolas do Brasil. As reações desenvolvidas no presente estudo serão valiosas no diagnóstico e na monitoria da doença. / Avian Infectious Bronchitis (IB) is one of the avian respiratory diseases with the greatest impact on poultry farming worldwide. In Brazil, strains BR-I (GI-11) and Massachusetts (GI-1) are the most prevalent in poultry flocks. The present study aimed to develop semi-nested PCR reactions for the diagnosis of IBV BR-I and Mass strains, in Brazilian samples obtained during the period of 2016 and 2017. Two semi-nested PCR reactions targeting the 1 subunit of the S gene were developed, specific for BR-I and Mass strains. The detection threshold was 104 copies of DNA/µL in both reactions (3,76fg/µL in the exclusive BR-I reaction; and 5,58fg/µL and 5,57fg/µL in the duplex reaction of BR-I and Mass, respectively). Subsequently, 572 organ pools from the 5 regions of Brazil were evaluated. Among these samples, 62,24% were positive for Coronavirus, being the target of this reaction the 3UTR region. The specific semi-nested PCR reaction detected the BR-I strain in 84,83% of the Coronavirus positive samples. The duplex semi-nested PCR reaction detected 65,44% of the samples positive for the BR-I strain, 7,35% positive for Mass strain, and co-infection of the BR-I and Mass strain in 17,65% of the samples. After the analysis of the positive controls (Mass and BR-I vaccines) in BLASTn, the result of the sequencing of the PCR products, phylogenetic analysis, nucleotide similarity and amino acid deduction, was confirmed the expected clustering of the sequences detected by the PCR reactions directed to BR-I and Mass strains. These results confirm the predominant presence of the BR-I strain, and to a lesser extent, the Mass strain in Brazilian poultry flocks. The reactions developed in the present study will be valuabe in the diagnosis and monitoring of the disease.