Numerous polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods have been developed and used increasingly to screen vertebrate blood samples for the diagnosis of haemosporidian blood parasites (Sporozoa, Haemosporida), but a rigorous evaluation of the sensitivity of these methods for detecting mixed infections of different haemosporidian species belonging to the same and different genera and subgenera is lacking. This study links the information obtained by nested cytochrome b PCR and traditional microscopy in determining mixed haemosporidian infections in naturally infected birds. Samples from 83 individual passerine birds with single infections of Haemoproteus or Plasmodium spp., as determined by mitochondrial DNA amplification, also were investigated by microscopic examination of stained blood films. Thirty-six samples (43%) were found to harbor mixed Haemoproteus, or Plasmodium spp. infections, or both. Thus, the PCR assays alone underestimate the occurrence of mixed infections of haemosporidian parasites in naturally infected birds. To determine the true species composition of the haemosporidians in each individual host, PCR diagnostics need to be improved. Specific primers for Haemoproteus spp. and Plasmodium spp. should be developed. Ideally, a combination of the approaches of both microscopy and PCR-based methods is recommended for this purpose.
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April 2006
Research Article|
April 01 2006
Nested Cytochrome B Polymerase Chain Reaction Diagnostics Underestimate Mixed Infections of Avian Blood Haemosporidian Parasites: Microscopy is Still Essential
Gediminas Valkiūnas;
Gediminas Valkiūnas
aInstitute of Ecology, Vilnius University, Vilnius 21, LT-08412, Lithuania
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Staffan Bensch;
Staffan Bensch
bDepartment of Animal Ecology, Ecology Building, Lund University, SE-22362 Lund, Sweden
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Tatjana A. Iezhova;
Tatjana A. Iezhova
aInstitute of Ecology, Vilnius University, Vilnius 21, LT-08412, Lithuania
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Asta Križanauskienė;
Asta Križanauskienė
aInstitute of Ecology, Vilnius University, Vilnius 21, LT-08412, Lithuania
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Olof Hellgren;
Olof Hellgren
bDepartment of Animal Ecology, Ecology Building, Lund University, SE-22362 Lund, Sweden
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Casimir V. Bolshakov
Casimir V. Bolshakov
cBiological Station of the Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Rybachy, 238535 Kaliningrad District, Russia. gedvalk@ekoi.lt
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J Parasitol (2006) 92 (2): 418–422.
Citation
Gediminas Valkiūnas, Staffan Bensch, Tatjana A. Iezhova, Asta Križanauskienė, Olof Hellgren, Casimir V. Bolshakov; Nested Cytochrome B Polymerase Chain Reaction Diagnostics Underestimate Mixed Infections of Avian Blood Haemosporidian Parasites: Microscopy is Still Essential. J Parasitol 1 April 2006; 92 (2): 418–422. doi: https://doi.org/10.1645/GE-3547RN.1
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