Diagnostic evaluation of PCR in goats experimentally infected with Trypanosoma vivax

Six goats were experimentally infected with a stock of Trypanosoma vivax. Parasitaemia was weekly monitored by buffy coat and wet blood film examination during a period of 15 weeks and another 3 weeks following drug-treatment. Dried blood samples were tested by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), using an extraction method with Chelex® 100 (BioRad). PCR proved consistently more sensitive than the parasitological techniques.