Abstract
Biomarkers are specific molecular, histological, or physiological characteristics of normal or pathogenic biological processes and are promising in the diagnosis of gastrointestinal nematodes (GINs). Although some biomarkers have been validated for infection by Ostertagia sp. in cattle raised in temperate regions, there is a lack of information for tropical regions. The aim of this project was to assess potential biomarkers and validate the most promising. In the first study, 36 bovines (Nelore breed) naturally infected by GINs were distributed into two groups: infected (not treated with anthelmintic) and treated (treated with fenbendazole on days 0, 7, 14, 21, 28, 42, and 56). The variables of interest were live weight, fecal egg count, hemogram, serum biochemical markers, phosphorus, gastrin, and pepsinogen. In the second step, pepsinogen was assessed in cattle of the Nelore breed distributed among three groups: infected (not treated with anthelmintic), MOX (treated with moxidectin), and IVM + BZD (treated with ivermectin + albendazole). In the first study, no difference between groups was found for weight, albumin, hematocrit (corpuscular volume [CV]), erythrocytes, or hemoglobin. Negative correlations were found between pepsinogen and both CV and albumin, and albumin was negatively correlated with the percentage of Haemonchus sp. in the fecal culture. Among the biomarkers, only pepsinogen differentiated treated and infected (beginning with the 28th day of the study). In the second study, a reduction in pepsinogen was found after anthelmintic treatment. Therefore, pepsinogen is a promising biomarker of worms in cattle naturally infected by the genera Haemonchus and Cooperia in tropical areas.
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Funding
This study was funded by MSD and supported in part by the Coordination for the Advancement of Higher Education Personnel — Brazil (CAPES) — Finance Code 001, Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul — UFMS / MEC — Brazil, and National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), Brazil — Research Productivity Scholarship to FAB (303950/2021–8).
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Conceptualization: DCR and FAB; Methodology: VDR, DGLB and FAB; Formal analysis and investigation: VDR, MHC, DGLB, MGF, CANR, AIS, GHR; Writing—original draft preparation: VDR; Writing—review and editing: DGLB and FAB; Funding acquisition DCR and FAB; Supervision: FAB.
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This study received approval from the Animal Research Ethics Committee of Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS) (certificate number: 1074/2019).
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Rodrigues, V.D., Borges, D.G.L., Conde, M.H. et al. Biomarkers of gastrointestinal nematodes in beef cattle raised in a tropical area. Parasitol Res 123, 207 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-024-08228-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-024-08228-8