primate assay data sheet
Burkholderia mallei and pseudomallei
(glanders and melioidosis)
NOTE: THIS TEST IS NOT PERFORMED ON
SAMPLES TAKEN FROM ANIMALS OWNED OR LOCATED IN THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA.
Test code:
B0025 - Ultrasensitive qualitative detection but not
differentiation of
Burkholderia mallei and Burkholderia pseudomallei by real time polymerase chain reaction.
Burkholderia mallei
and Burkholderia pseudomallei cause glanders and melioidosis.
Melioidosis is endemic in Southeast Asia and northern Australia.
Septicemic melioidosis is a major cause of high morbidity and
mortality in Northeastern Thailand. Sporadic reports of
melioidosis in humans and animals occur throughout the world.
Glanders, on
the other hand, is a serious infectious equine disease. Human
glanders is rare and is found primarily in veterinarians, horse
and donkey caretakers, abattoir workers (Eitzen et al., 1999)
and laboratory workers (Jenning, 1963). Glanders in humans is
acquired from infected animals or by ingestion or inhalation of
Burkholderia bacteria. Laboratory workers handling Burkholderia
may become infected by inhaling aerosols containing these
bacteria. The spectrum of disease ranges from a symptomatic
infection to fulminate septicemia, which needs rapid detection
and differentiation for specific treatment.
B.
mallei
and B. pseudomallei species are very similar in their nutritional
and biochemical properties. Sequence analysis of the two
bacteria indicates DNA similarity of more than 80% in these two
species. For some sequences, such as 16S rRNA, homology of these
two bacteria is up to 100%.
Not only are
these species indistinguishable morphologically, it is also
difficult to distinguish them serologically. They produce
diseases in experimental animals that are practically identical,
both clinically and pathologically.
In medical
microbiological laboratories it is safer to examine highly
pathogenic micro-organisms under kill-conditions, so live
culturing of bacteria such as Burholderia should be avoided if
possible. PCR detection of these bacteria is useful because it
is rapid, sensitive, specific and safer than culture-based
detection.
Utilities:
-
Help confirm the disease causing agent
-
Shorten the time required to confirm a clinical
diagnosis of Burkholderia
infection.
-
Help ensure that primate facilities are free of these
agents
-
Early prevention of spread of these agents
-
Minimize personnel exposure to these agents
-
Safety monitoring of biological products and vaccines
that derive from susceptible animals
References:
Eitzen, E., Culpepper, R., Cieslak, T., Christopher, G., Rowe,
J. and Pavin, J. (1999) Editors, Glanders: medical management of
biological casualties handbook, US Army Medical Research
Institute Diseases Fort Detrick, Maryland. Jenning, W.E.
(1963) Glanders. In: C. Charles, Editor, Diseases transmitted
from animals to man, Thomas Publisher, Springfield, pp. 262–264.
Detection of Burkholderia mallei and Burkholderia pseudomallei
by PCR.
Specimen requirements: 0.2 ml whole blood in EDTA (purple top) tube, or 0.2 ml sputum, pus or bacterial subculture.
Contact Zoologix if advice is needed to determine an appropriate specimen type for a specific diagnostic application. For specimen types not listed here, please contact Zoologix to confirm specimen acceptability and shipping instructions.
For all specimen types, if there will be a delay in shipping, or
during very warm weather, refrigerate specimens until shipped
and ship with a cold pack unless more stringent shipping
requirements are specified. Frozen specimens should be shipped
so as to remain frozen in transit. See
shipping instructions
for more information.
Turnaround time:
2 business days
Methodology:
Qualitative
real time PCR
Normal range:
Nondetected
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