African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a highly pathogenic DNA virus that is the causative agent of African swine fever (ASF), an infectious disease of domestic and wild pigs of all breeds and ages, causing a range of syndromes. Acute disease is characterized by high fever, haemorrhages in the reticuloendothelial system, and a high mortality rate. A powerful novel diagnostic assay based on the Lin...

A nested reverse transcription (RT)-PCR was developed for simultaneous detection and typing of influenza viruses A and B. The detection limit for influenza virus A subtypes H1 and H3 and that for influenza virus B were between 1 and 4 target gene copies per reaction for each type. The clinical benefit of the RT-PCR method was evaluated by comparing the results with virus isolation and direct im...

Background: This study aimed to design and analyze the applicability of an oligonucleotide probe in radioisotope 32P-based dot blot hybridization for detection of hepatitis C virus. Methods: Forty-six of plasma samples were used. The plasma was extracted to obtain viral RNA genome as template for RT-PCR and the amplicon was used for nested PCR. Twenty-four HCV genomes were retrieved from GeneBa...

b a ckground:   eco-faunistic  studies  are  inevitable  step  in  environmental  researches.  aquatic  organisms  like caddisflies are known as biological indicators for water quality assessment and water resource management. they have special role for energy flow in the freshwater habitats as food web and food chain among aquatic creatures. methods: in addition to an extensive literature revi...

phytoplanktons are the first bio- indicators of pollution in aquatic ecosystems. phytoplankton assemblage and aquatic ecosystems are always influenced by environmental factors therefore these environmental changes and threats must be understood in any ecosystem. phytoplankton are inexpensive and readily available bio- indicators. in the present study, phytoplankton were used to study the sefid ...

BACKGROUND/AIMS Human papillomavirus (HPV) is an epitheliotropic, double-stranded DNA virus, and its high-risk genotypes are associated with human cancer. HPV genome has been detected in lung carcinomas in certain places around the world, including Mexico; however, the prevalence of this is unclear. In this study, we examine the frequency of high-risk HPV 16/18 in lung cancer tissues from a Mex...

A real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was evaluated to detect Salmonella in hydrodynamic pressure (HDP)-treated chicken using molecular beacon probes available as a commercial kit (iQ-Check, Bio-Rad Laboratories). The sensitivity and accuracy of the assay were compared with the conventional USDA microbiological procedure using artificially contaminated minced chicken. Chicken fillet...

Real-time PCR analysis of bacterial DNA isolated from faecal specimens has become increasingly used for the quantification of indigenous intestinal microbiota. The success of such analysis requires effective methods for the extraction of faecal bacterial DNA. Three extraction methods were assessed for their effectiveness in extracting Escherichia coli and Enterococcus spp. bacterial DNA from hu...

HIV persists in latently infected cells of patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART). This persistent proviral DNA reservoir is an important predictor of viral rebound upon therapy failure or interruption and forms a major obstacle towards cure. Accurate quantification of the low levels of persisting HIV DNA may aid patient monitoring and cure research. Digital PCR is a promising tool that enabl...

Although KRAS mutational status testing is becoming a companion diagnostic tool for managing patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), there are still several difficulties when analyzing KRAS mutations using the existing assays, particularly with regard to low sensitivity, its time-consuming, and the need for large instruments. We developed a rapid, sensitive, and specific mutation detection assay...