Fig. 2.

Determine the sensitivity of detection of B. microti using in vitro grown parasites by qPCR. a Amplification plots of Bmtpk gene in monoplex qPCR assay starting with 10⁶ gene copies (8ng DNA). Five-fold dilutions of genomic DNA of B. microti purified from in vitro grown culture using Bmtpk primers and molecular beacon probe were used to determine quantities of B. microti. Dotted line indicates ‘no template’ control. b A high coefficient of correlation (r ² = 0.9822) between the amplification cycle number (Ct values) and Bmtpk copy number representing the parasite numbers obtained from the standard curve indicates that qPCR can be used effectively to evaluate even low level of parasitemia in patients