Person:
Martínez Alares, Irene

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First Name
Irene
Last Name
Martínez Alares
Affiliation
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Faculty / Institute
Veterinaria
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Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Environment and Offspring Surveillance in Porcine Brucellosis
    (Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2022) Rebollada Merino, Agustín Miguel; Pérez Sancho, Marta; Rodríguez Bertos, Antonio Manuel; García Benzaquén, Nerea; Martínez Alares, Irene; Navarro Gómez, Alejandro; Domínguez Rodríguez, Lucas José; García-Seco Romero, María Teresa
    Porcine brucellosis, caused by Brucella suis (B. suis), is a notifiable disease causing significant economic losses in production systems.Most infected pigsmay act as carriers and shed B. suis even if asymptomatic. This can contribute to environmental persistence, thus hindering control efforts. Here, the environment and the offspring were investigated during and after a B. suis outbreak at a sow breeding farm. The diagnosis of B. suis in sows (n = 1,140) was performed by culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from vaginal swabs, indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (I-ELISA) from sera, and brucellin skin test (BST). B. suis diagnosis in post-weaning pigs (n = 899) was performed by I-ELISA in sera and BST. The environmental surveillance programme was implemented by placing gauze sponges (n = 175) pre-hydrated in a surfactant and inactivating liquid for Brucella DNA detection by PCR in different farm areas. Our results showed that the offspring of infected sows reacted to in vivo techniques for B. suis. Furthermore, the offspring born during the outbreak displayed higher seropositivity (I- ELISA) and reactivity (BST) than those pigs born after. Brucella DNA was detected in pregnant sow areas, boxes, boots, and post-weaning pig areas. In addition, Brucella DNA environmental detection was higher during the B. suis outbreak than the post B. suis outbreak. The environmental approach has proven to be a simple, practical, valuable, and safe method to detect and monitor B. suis. These results suggest a role of the environment and the offspring that should be considered in porcine brucellosis surveillance and control programmes.
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    Assessment of genetic diversity of zoonotic Brucella spp. recovered from livestock in Egypt using multiple locus VNTR analysis
    (BioMed research international, 2014) Menshawy, Ahmed M S; Hosein, Hosein I; García Benzaquén, Nerea; Martínez Alares, Irene; Sayour, Ashraf E; Goyache Goñi, Joaquín; Azzam, Ragab A A; Álvarez Sánchez, Julio; Domínguez Rodríguez, Lucas José; Pérez Sancho, Marta; García-Seco Romero, María Teresa; Pérez Sancho, Marta
    Brucellosis is endemic in most parts of Egypt, where it is caused mainly by Brucella melitensis biovar 3, and affects cattle and small ruminants in spite of ongoing efforts devoted to its control. Knowledge of the predominant Brucella species/strains circulating in a region is a prerequisite of a brucellosis control strategy. For this reason a study aiming at the evaluation of the phenotypic and genetic heterogeneity of a panel of 17 Brucella spp. isolates recovered from domestic ruminants (cattle, buffalo, sheep, and goat) from four governorates during a period of five years (2002-2007) was carried out using microbiological tests and molecular biology techniques (PCR, MLVA-15, and sequencing). Thirteen strains were identified as B. melitensis biovar 3 while all phenotypic and genetic techniques classified the remaining isolates as B. abortus (n = 2) and B. suis biovar 1 (n = 2). MLVA-15 yielded a high discriminatory power (h = 0.801), indicating a high genetic diversity among the B. melitensis strains circulating among domestic ruminants in Egypt. This is the first report of the isolation of B. suis from cattle in Egypt which, coupled with the finding of B. abortus, suggests a potential role of livestock as reservoirs of several zoonotic Brucella species in the region.
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    Development and evaluation of an IS711-based loop mediated isothermal amplification method (LAMP) for detection of Brucella spp. on clinical samples
    (Research in Veterinary Science, 2013) Pérez Sancho, Marta; García-Seco Romero, María Teresa; Arrogante, L; García, N; García Benzaquén, Nerea; Martínez Alares, Irene; Díez Guerrier, Alberto Antoine; Perales, A; Goyache Goñi, Joaquín; Domínguez Rodríguez, Lucas José; Álvarez Sánchez, Julio
    DNA-based methods have emerged as an additional tool for Brucella infection-confirmation at a herd level. However, their implementation may require the use of specialized equipment. In this context the recently developed loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique may constitute an additional and cost-effective tool for rapid and specific DNA detection, especially in low income areas. In the present study the usefulness of a newly developed LAMP assay aiming at the multicopy-IS711 sequence was assessed on a variety of clinical samples (n = 81 from abortions and ewes; cattle, n = 3; swine, n = 4) that were analyzed in parallel using real-time PCR and bacteriology. Although overall sensitivities obtained with the three methods were comparable (p > 0.05), our results highlighted the complementarity between bacteriology and molecular-based methods for increased sensitivity. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed with all techniques depending on the nature of the sample. Our results demonstrate the potential of the IS711-LAMP technique for direct Brucella detection.
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    Interferon-gamma responses in sheep exposed to virulent and attenuated Brucella melitensis strains
    (Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology, 2014) Pérez Sancho, Marta; Durán-Ferrer, Manuel; García-Seco Romero, María Teresa; Macías, Paula; García Benzaquén, Nerea; Martínez Alares, Irene; Ruiz, Elena; Legaz, Emilio; Díez Guerrier, Alberto Antoine; González Domínguez, Sergio; Domínguez Rodríguez, Lucas José; Álvarez Sánchez, Julio
    Antibody detection is the basis of large-scale sheep brucellosis diagnosis because of its sensitivity and specificity. In contrast, information on the cellular mediated immune (CMI) response triggered after Brucella melitensis infection, a cornerstone in the protection against this pathogen, is more limited, particularly regarding the effect of the virulence of the infecting strain in the induced CMI reaction. Here, the interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) profiles evoked after exposure by different routes to virulent (H38) and attenuated (Rev.1) B. melitensis strains in 14 pregnant sheep and 87 ewe lambs, respectively, were characterized accounting for different host-related factors, and compared with their serological response and with the basal IFN-gamma responses observed in 155 animals non exposed to Brucella. No significant differences in the IFN-gamma response of Rev.1 vaccinated animals depending on the inoculation route was observed, in contrast with their serological results. Response in H38- challenged followed a similar trend although peaked later, and an effect of the abortion on the IFN-gamma response was detected. This information could help to understand the interaction bacteria–host that leads to its intracellular survival and could be useful for the design of new diagnostic approaches.