Seroprevalence of nasal myiasis in camels determined by indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay utilizing the most diagnostic Cephalopina titillator larval antigens

Abstract

Background and Aim: Nasal myiasis is a serious parasitic disease among camels caused by Cephalopina titillator larvae that negatively affect animal health and production globally. The diagnosis of the infestation relies on postmortem examination of the head region, which considers a cause impeding treatment of live animals and may be misdiagnosed as central nervous system disorders. This study aimed to identify the most diagnostic larval antigen with the capacity for monitoring infestation. In Egypt, using C. titillator indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), a titillator was used to estimate the seroprevalence of nasal myiasis in camels. Materials and Methods: Three hundred and six male camels of Egyptian and Sudanese breeds, aged 2–5 years, were clinically evaluated for respiratory and/or nervous disorders in Cairo Governorate, Egypt. At the time of slaughter, blood samples were collected from all examined animals. The postmortem examination of 38 animals was conducted. Salivary glands, hemolymph, and somatic antigens were extracted from the second and third larval instars. Results: The results revealed that the salivary gland antigen was the most effective antigen for detecting C. titillator compared to hemolymph and crude somatic antigens, titillator-specific total immunoglobulin G antibodies are more prevalent. Using receiver-operating characteristic curves and area under the curve, the salivary gland antigen had a sensitivity of 91.67% and a specificity of 92.31%, respectively. It has the highest positive predictive value, 95.7%, and negative predictive value, 85.7%. However, using somatic and hemolymph antigens revealed a sensitivity of 79.17% and 70.83% and a specificity of 76.9% and 84.6%, respectively. There was complete concordance between ELISA results and autopsy findings (true positive). One hundred and forty out of 306 (45.8%) camel serum samples were found to contain C. titillator. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that salivary gland antigen is more effective than somatic and hemolymph antigens in accurately detecting nasal myiasis in camels. In addition, determining the seroprevalence of nasal myiasis with the salivary gland antigen through indirect ELISA revealed that it is a prevalent disease among camels in Egypt. Periodic surveillance of the C. titillator prevalence is necessary for effective management and control measures.

Validation of an in-house Sarcosystis fusiformis glycoprotein-based ELISA for the serodiagnosis of sarcocystosis in buffaloes

“…ELISA is commonly used to detect antibodies against many pathogens as it is readily available, easy to use, and does not need intensive labor or equipment (El Shanawany et al 2019a; Kandil et al 2019;Kandil et al 2020;Hassan et al, 2022). Although Sarcocystis spp.…”