The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a very powerful method to detect and identify pathogens. The high sensitivity of the method, however, comes with a cost; any of the millions of artificial DNA copies generated by PCR can serve as a template in a following experiment. If not identified as contaminations, these may result in erroneous conclusions on the occurrence of the pathogen, thereby inflating estimates of host range and geographic distribution. In the present paper, we evaluate whether several published records of avian haemosporidian parasites, in either unusual host species or geographical regions, might stem from PCR contaminations rather than novel biological findings. The detailed descriptions of these cases are shedding light upon the steps in the work process that might lead to PCR contaminations. By increasing the awareness of this problem, it will aid in developing procedures that keep these to a minimum. The examples in the present paper are from haemosporidians of birds, however the problem of contaminations and suggested actions should apply generally to all kinds of PCR-based identifications, not just of parasites and pathogens.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1755-0998.13272 | DOI Listing |
J Clin Virol
January 2025
Virology department, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, 36. Avenue Pasteur Dakar, Dakar 220, Senegal.
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the most common cause of acute viral hepatitis, responsible for large outbreaks in resource limited countries. The virus belongs to the genus Orthohepevirus which is subdivided into eight distinct genotypes (HEV-1 to HEV-8). Human disease transmission is mostly through the faecal-oral route.
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January 2025
Equine Research Institute, Japan Racing Association, Shimotsuke, Tochigi, Japan.
Equine influenza virus (EIV) can be transmitted by inhalation of aerosolized droplets, direct contact, and contaminated fomites. However, to our knowledge, there are no reports of the recovery of EIV from the air surrounding infected horses. Here, we evaluated whether EIV can be recovered from the air in the stalls of experimentally infected horses by using an air sampler.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEcotoxicol Environ Saf
January 2025
Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Typical Environmental Pollution and Health Hazards, School of Public Health, Hengyang Medical school, University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan 421001, China. Electronic address:
Microcystin LR (MC-LR) pollution is a serious threat to aquatic ecosystems and public health in China and is an environmental problem that urgently needs to be solved. However, few studies have investigated the anaerobic degradation pathway and related molecular biological mechanisms of MC-LR. In this study, a bacterium capable of degrading MC-LR with a degradation efficiency of 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Food Microbiol
January 2025
Department of Pathobiology and Population Sciences, Royal Veterinary College, NW1 0TU London, United Kingdom; Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark. Electronic address:
We determined the frequency, genotypes, phenotypes, and mobility of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-encoding genes in Enterobacteriaceae isolated from retail seafood products. Overall, 288 samples of fresh shrimps, catfish and seabass imported from Asia were collected from three supermarket chains in the UK (96 each). After enrichment in MacConkey broth supplemented with cefotaxime, total DNA was screened for the presence of CTX-M, SHV and TEM by real-time PCR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Total Environ
January 2025
College of Environment and Ecology, Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region's Eco-Environment, Ministry of Education, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China. Electronic address:
The increasing frequency of cyanobacterial blooms, particularly those induced by Microcystis aeruginosa (M. aeruginosa), poses severe economic, ecological and health challenges due to the production of microcystins (MCs). Environmental parameters such as light and nutrient availability influence MCs production, while the role of dissolved organic matter (DOM) photochemical processes in regulating these remains unclear.
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