An Overview of the Molecular Diagnosis of Cattle Cestodes and Metacestodes

Abstract

Cestode infestations in animals are the most important parasite of livestock and humans because most of these parasites are zoonotic causing cysticercosis and hydatidosis in man and it causes economic and production losses in livestock. Diagnosis of Taenia
Spp by microscopic observation lack sensitivity and specificity and detection by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
technique form cross-reaction. The molecular diagnostic can be best to detect in adult and larval stage in definitive and intermediate host based on the amplification of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of target gene with the primer using a different technique
of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) such as multiplex PCR. Conventional PCR, real-time PCR, nested PCR, and PCR-restriction
fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) are highly sensitive for the diagnosis of cestode and metacestode. Those diagnoses are
used for differentiation of Taenia species and differentiation of Taenia and Echinococcus species. As compared to other diagnostic
techniques most molecular methods have higher sensitivity and specificity but due to the relatively higher cost, few are commercially available. Most of the molecular diagnostic tests developed to date are generally applicable for laboratory research purposes.
The developments in the genomic and proteomic analysis should be used for further understanding of parasite-animal host interaction to find additional targets for diagnosis.