ECVD Article Alert Blog

The purpose of this blog is to alert ECVD Residents and Diplomates to relevant articles normally not published in one of the journals from the syllabus reading list. Important articles from that list might also be highlighted. This list is not meant to be exhaustive. A posting does not imply that the article will serve--or not--as the basis for an examination question. You may suggest any article by emailing its reference to tolivry at ncsu.edu. Happy reading! The Blog Committee

Monday, April 2, 2012

A PCR Assay to Detect Demodex canis

Ravera I, Altet L, Francino O et al. Development of a real-time PCR to detect Demodex canis DNA in different tissue samples. Parasitology Research 2011; 108: 305-308. Abstract.

PubMed ID (PMID): 20865428

Reprint: L. Ferrer

Comments: This paper reports the development of a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect Demodex canis DNA. This assay was successfully tested on canine hair and skin biopsies and showed a high sensitivity. The two main findings of the study are: 1) Demodex DNA was found in nearly 18% of tested healthy dogs samples, which is a much higher number than previously reported in microscopic studies, and 2) Demodex DNA was detected also in non-lesional skin from dogs with demodicosis. In summary, this test could be a useful tool for further investigations on the biology of this mite and on the pathogenesis of canine demodicosis.

Recommended by: Svetlana Belova, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Tartu, Estonia