In silico and in vitro evaluation of primers for molecular differentiation of Leishmania species.

Leishmaniasis is a zoonotic disease caused by over 20 species of protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania. Infection is commonly spread by sandflies and produces a wide spectrum of clinical signs and symptoms. Therefore, from an epidemiological and therapeutic standpoint, it is important to detect and differentiate Leishmania spp.

Chromosomal segments may explain the antibody response cooperation for canine leishmaniasis pathogenesis.

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is marked by hyperactivation of a humoral response secreting high quantity of immunoglobulins (Igs) that are inaccessible to intracellular parasites. Here we investigated the contributions of the antibody response to the canine leishmaniasis pathogenesis. Using correlation and genome-wide association analysis, we investigated the relationship of anti-Leishmania infantum immunoglobulin classes levels with parasite burden, clinical response, renal/hepatic biochemical, and oxidative stress markers in dogs from endemic areas of VL.

Growth Rate and Acceleration Analysis of the COVID-19 Pandemic Reveals the Effect of Public Health Measures in Real Time.

Ending the COVID-19 pandemic is arguably one of the most prominent challenges in recent human history. Following closely the growth dynamics of the disease is one of the pillars toward achieving that goal. We aimed at developing a simple framework to facilitate the analysis of the growth rate (cases/day) and growth acceleration (cases/day) of COVID-19 cases in real-time.

Association of missense variants in GDF9 with litter size in Entlebucher Mountain dogs.

In the past two decades, average litter size (ALS) in Entlebucher Mountain dogs decreased by approximately 0.8 puppies. We conducted a GWAS for ALS using the single-step methodology to take advantage of 1632 pedigree records, 892 phenotypes and 372 genotypes (173 662 markers) for which only 12% of the dogs had both phenotypes and genotypes available.