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A novel quantitative polymerase chain reaction to monitor urinary tract mycoplasma infection in a dog
Author(s) -
Hemmatzadeh F.,
Niap F.,
Bennett B.A.,
Trott D.J.,
Peaston A.E.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
letters in applied microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.698
H-Index - 110
eISSN - 1472-765X
pISSN - 0266-8254
DOI - 10.1111/lam.13139
Subject(s) - mycoplasma , urinary system , ureaplasma urealyticum , ureaplasma , polymerase chain reaction , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , antibiotics , urine , immunology , virology , medicine , biochemistry , gene
The aim of the study was to develop a quantitative real‐time PCR assay for diagnosis and monitoring of mycoplasma urinary tract infections ( UTI ) in a dog. An English Cocker Spaniel dog with the history of urinary tract infection was physically examined and laboratory findings identified chronic renal insufficiency and urinary tract infection. Attempts to culture organisms from pyuric urine failed, and empirical antibiotic therapy did not resolve the pyuria. A mycoplasma species most closely resembling Ureaplasma canigenitalium was identified in urine samples by conventional PCR and sequencing. A quantitative PCR method was developed to monitor and finally verify successful treatment. This novel approach to monitoring mycoplasma urinary tract infections is conceptually simple, and provides rapid results. It may have wider application in monitoring treatment efficacy for infections with other Mycoplasma spp. as well as additional organisms that are difficult to culture. Significance and Impact of the Study In this study, we highlight two different findings, detection of Ureaplasma canigenitalium in a dog with chronic urinary tract infection and development of a quantitative real‐time PCR test to track treatment results in an infected dog. This report is the first report of detection of U. canigenitalium in one dog in Australia. This novel qPCR method for monitoring mycoplasma urinary tract infections is conceptually simple and provides results fast. It will have wider applications in monitoring treatment efficacy for infections with mycoplasmas and mycoplasma‐like organisms that are difficult to culture, and provides a sensitive guide to treatment progress.