Use of a Taqman PCR to determine the response of Mycoplasma haemofelis infection to antibiotic treatment

• Published in: Journal of microbiological methods 2004, Vol.56 (1), p.63-71
• Main Authors: Tasker, Séverine, Helps, Chris R, Day, Michael J, Harbour, Dave A, Gruffydd-Jones, Timothy J, Lappin, Michael R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - administration & dosage; Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use; Bacteriology; Biological and medical sciences; Cat Diseases - drug therapy; Cat Diseases - microbiology; Cats; DNA, Bacterial - chemistry; DNA, Bacterial - genetics; Doxycycline; Doxycycline - therapeutic use; Enrofloxacin; Female; Fluoroquinolones - therapeutic use; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Male; Microbiology; Miscellaneous; Mycoplasma - genetics; Mycoplasma - growth & development; Mycoplasma haemofelis; Mycoplasma Infections - blood; Mycoplasma Infections - drug therapy; Mycoplasma Infections - microbiology; Mycoplasma Infections - veterinary; PCR; Polymerase Chain Reaction - methods; Polymerase Chain Reaction - veterinary; Quantification; Quinolones - therapeutic use; Random Allocation; RNA, Ribosomal, 28S - chemistry; RNA, Ribosomal, 28S - genetics; Statistics, Nonparametric; Taqman; Treatment
• ISSN: 0167-7012; 1872-8359
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mimet.2003.09.017

A quantitative Taqman polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was used to evaluate the response of Mycoplasma haemofelis experimentally infected cats to three antibiotic treatment regimes. Sixteen cats were intravenously inoculated with M. haemofelis from a chronically infected donor. The cats were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups each containing four cats: oral doxycycline at 10 mg/kg/day for 14 days, oral enrofloxacin at 5 mg/kg/day for 14 days, oral enrofloxacin at 10 mg/kg/day for 14 days, and an untreated control group. DNA, extracted from blood samples collected on days 0, 7, 14, 21, 25, 28, 32, 35, 42 and 54 post-inoculation (PI), was subjected to quantitative Taqman PCR. The M. haemofelis copy number was significantly lower in the doxycycline group ( P=0.008), the 5 mg/kg/day enrofloxacin group ( P=0.006) and the 10 mg/kg/day enrofloxacin group ( P=0.005) compared to the untreated control group. No significant differences were found between any of the three antibiotic treated treatment groups. All three antibiotic treatment regimes evaluated in this study were effective at reducing M. haemofelis copy number.