Streptococcus group G PCR test
dog and cat assay data sheet
Group G
Strep
- "Fading kitten syndrome" and "Fading puppy syndrome"
Test code:
B0106 -
Ultrasensitive qualitative detection of
disease-causing Group G
Streptococcus in cats and dogs by real time PCR. This test
detects
Streptococcus canis, the most
common pathogenic cause of fading kitten or puppy syndrome.
Streptococcus canis is one species in a group
of beta-hemolytic
Streptococcus
species that are collectively known as "Group G Strep" bacteria.
Streptococcus canis is so named because it was first isolated from dogs. These bacteria
differ from another group G
Streptococcus, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, which is a human-specific group G
species that has a different phenotypic chemical composition.
S. canis is a commensal
bacteria commonly found in cats and dogs, and is important to their
skin and mucosal health. It is considered part of the natural flora
of the respiratory tract of cats and dogs.
S. canis can infect a
variety of mammal species besides cats and dogs, such as mink, mice,
rabbits, foxes, cattle, and even humans.
However, Streptococcus canis
can cause opportunistic infections under certain circumstances, such
as in young kittens or pups when their immune systems are still weak.
Occasional outbreaks of necrotizing
S. canis infections have
also
occurred in adult shelter cats because these cats often have poor immune
systems due to stress and other infections. In confirmed outbreaks of
S. canis infection, infected cats develop upper respiratory
infection that can eventually result in severe sinusitis and/or
abscesses. Timely treatment with suitable antibiotics usually can
result in speedy recovery.
While there are various other causes of fading puppy and kitten syndrome, such
as environmental factors and genetic factors, pathogenic infection
still represents the major cause of the failure of puppies or kittens
to thrive. S. canis
infection is often identified in these cases.
There are a number of environmental Group G Strep strains which
are not pathogenic in dogs and cats and could give false positive
results if not excluded from diagnostic tests. The Zoologix B0106 test
described here excludes most group G Strep strains not known to be
pathogenic in dogs and cats.
The identification of S. canis
traditionally relied on determination of biochemical properties and on
serological grouping using Lancefield antisera. However, these
procedures usually take a long time, and clinical specimens collected
from these animals are often admixed with other species of
Streptococcus bacteria,
which may interfere with the culture and biochemical identification of
S. canis. However, molecular
detection of S. canis by
polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a widely-accepted alternative to
culture and biochemical identification methods, and is highly
sensitive and rapid (Hassan et al., 2003).
Utilities:
-
Help confirm the disease causing agent
-
Shorten the time required to confirm a clinical diagnosis of the
bacterial infection
-
Early prevention of spread of Streptococcus canis among
cats and dogs
-
Minimize human exposure to
Streptococcus canis
References:
Hassan, A.A., Khan, I.U., Abdulmawjood, A. and Lämmler, C. (2003)
Development of PCR assays for detection of
Streptococcus canis. FEMS
Microbiol. Letts. 219: 209-214.
Specimen requirement:
Vaginal swab (queens and bitches), or prepuce swab (toms and sire dogs), or
nasopharyngeal swab (kittens and pups), or 0.2 ml fresh, frozen or
fixed tissue.
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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