Rapid diagnosis of Toxoplasma gondii using loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay in camels and small ruminants

Abstract

Abstract Background This study was conducted to detect the presence of T. gondii in milk and blood samples using three different assays: enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay (LAMP). Whole blood, serum, and milk samples were collected from goats (n = 156), sheep (n = 261), and camels (n = 108) in different governorates in Egypt from December 2019 to February 2021 and screened by ELISA for anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies before DNA extraction. The target T. gondii DNA gene was detected and evaluated using the LAMP assay compared to PCR. Results T. gondii antibodies were found in milk and serum samples at the rates of (29.26%) and (36.58%) in camels, (34.18%) and (35.89%) in sheep, and (33.7%) and (36.36%) in goats, respectively. Similar to PCR, the percentages of LAMP tests for the detection of the T. gondii DNA gene in milk and blood samples of camels, sheep, and goats were (4.8, 14.63), (6.83, 7.69), and (7.79, 9.09), respectively. LAMP's sensitivity for detecting T. gondii in milk and blood samples, which was identical to that of PCR, was 100%. Conclusions The findings clearly demonstrated that there were no variations in T. gondii detection capabilities in milk and blood samples from various animals using both PCR and LAMP tests. It provides a quick, precise, and sensitive method of detecting T. gondii in a variety of samples that may be used both in the field and in laboratory diagnosis.