Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, the causative agent of porcine pleuropneumonia,

is one of the most important disease agents, but its identification and surveillance can be impaired by the existence of many other related bacteria in normal swine microbiota. In this work, we have evaluated a BOX-A1R-based repetitive extragenic palindromic-PCR (BOX-PCR) sequence characterised amplified region (SCAR) marker for the specific identification of A. pleuropneumoniae and its use in a multiplex PCR to detect additionally Haemophilus parasuis and Pasteurella multocida, two other major respiratory pathogens of pigs that are members of 17-AAG the family Pasteurellaceae. PCRs based on the BOX-SCAR fragment developed were rapid, sensitive and differentiated A. pleuropneumoniae from all swine-related members of the Pasteurellaceae family tested. Single and

multiplex BOX-SCAR fragment-based PCRs can be used to identify A. pleuropneumoniae from other bacterial swine pathogens and will be useful in surveillance and epidemiological studies. “
“Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum (Fon) is one of the major limiting factors for watermelon production worldwide. Rapid and accurate detection of the causal pathogen is the cornerstone of integrated disease management. In this paper, a real-time fluorescence loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RealAmp) assay was developed for the rapid and quantitative detection of Fon in soil. Positive products were amplified only from Fon isolates and AZD4547 supplier not from any other species or formae speciales of F. oxysporum tested, showing a high specificity of the primer sets. The detection limit of the RealAmp assay was 1.2 pg μL−1 genomic DNA or 103 spores g−1 of artificially inoculated soil, whereas real-time PCR could detect as low as 12 fg μL−1 or 102 spores g−1. The RealAmp assay was further applied to detect eight artificially

inoculated and 85 field soil samples. No significant differences were found between the results tested by the RealAmp and real-time PCR triclocarban assays. The RealAmp assay is a simple, rapid and effective technique for the quantitative detection and monitoring of Fon in soil under natural conditions. “
“The epidemic community-associated methicillin-resistant clone Staphylococcus aureus USA300 is a major source of skin and soft tissue infections and involves strains with a diverse set of resistance genes. In this study, we report efficient transduction of penicillinase and tetracycline resistance plasmids by bacteriophages φ80α and φJB between clinical isolates belonging to the USA300 clone. High transduction frequencies (10−5–10−6 CFU/PFU) were observed using phages propagated on donor strains as well as prophages induced from donors by ultraviolet light.