Project description:Actinobaculum suis is an important agent related to urinary infection in swine females. Due to its fastidious growth characteristics, the isolation of this anaerobic bacterium is difficult, thus impairing the estimation of its prevalence. The purpose of this study was to develop and test a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection and identification of A. suis and then compare these results with traditional isolation methods. Bacterial isolation and PCR were performed on one hundred and ninety-two urine samples from sows and forty-five preputial swabs from boars. The results indicate that this PCR was specific for A. suis, presenting a detection limit between 1.0 × 10(1) CFU/mL and 1.0 × 10(2) CFU/mL. A. suis frequencies, as measured by PCR, were 8.9% (17/192) in sow urine samples and 82.2% (37/45) in preputial swabs. Assessed using conventional culturing techniques, none of the urine samples were positive for A. suis; however, A. suis was detected in 31.1% (14/45) of the swabs. This PCR technique was shown to be an efficient method for the detection of A. suis in urine and preputial swabs.
Project description:Streptococcus suis is an important zoonotic pathogen that can cause meningitis and sepsis in both pigs and humans. In this study,we evaluated the genetic difference of 40 Streptococcus suis strains belonging to various sequence types by comparative genomic hybridization to identify genes associated with the variation in pathogenicity using NimbleGen’s tilling microarray platform. Application of Comparative Phylogenomics to Identify Genetic Differences Relating to Pathogenicity of Streptococcus suis
Project description:Identification of Genes and Genomic Islands Correlated with High Pathogenicity through Tilling Microarray-Based Comparative Genomics in S. suis. Streptococcus suis is an important zoonotic pathogen that can cause meningitis and sepsis in both pigs and humans. S. suis isolates have been categorized into groups of different levels of pathogenicity, with sequence type (ST) ST1 clonal complex strains having a higher degree of virulence than other STs. However, the genetic basis of the differences in pathogenicity is still poorly understood. In this study, a comprehensive genomic comparison of 31 S. suis strains from different clinical sources with the genome sequence of the high pathogenicity (HP) strain GZ1 was conducted using NimbleGen’s tilling microarray platform.