Abstract
The presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in wild swine, such as in wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Eurasia, is cause for serious concern. Development of accurate, efficient, and noninvasive methods to detect MTBC in wild swine would be highly beneficial to surveillance and disease management efforts in affected populations. Here, we describe the first report of identification of volatile organic compounds (VOC) obtained from the breath and feces of wild boar to distinguish between MTBC-positive and MTBC-negative boar. We analyzed breath and fecal VOC collected from 15 MTBC-positive and 18 MTBC-negative wild boar in Donaña National Park in Southeast Spain. Analyses were divided into three age classes, namely, adults (>2 years), sub-adults (12–24 months), and juveniles (<12 months). We identified significant compounds by applying the two-tailed statistical t-test for two samples assuming unequal variance, with an α value of 0.05. One statistically significant VOC was identified in breath samples from adult wild boar and 14 were identified in breath samples from juvenile wild boar. One statistically significant VOC was identified in fecal samples collected from sub-adult wild boar and three were identified in fecal samples from juvenile wild boar. In addition, discriminant function analysis (DFA) was used to build classification models for MTBC prediction in juvenile animals. Using DFA, we were able to distinguish between MTBC-positive juvenile wild boar and MTBC-negative juvenile wild boar using breath VOC or fecal VOC. Based on our results, further research is warranted and should be performed using larger sample sizes, as well as wild boar from various geographic locations, to verify these compounds as biomarkers for MTBC infection in this species. This new approach to detect MTBC infection in free-ranging wild boar potentially comprises a reliable and efficient screening tool for surveillance in animal populations.
Highlights
The presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in wild swine populations, such as in wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Europe [1,2], gives cause for serious concern, regarding the health of affected wild swine populations, and the health of domestic animal species, humans, and other wildlife that share habitats and resources with these populations [3]
This is the first report of identification of volatile organic compounds obtained from the breath feces of wild boar in order to distinguish between MTBC-positive and MTBC-negative boar
Discussion novel approach to detect MTBC infection in free-ranging wild boar has the potential to be a reliable. This is the first report of identification of volatile organic compounds obtained from the breath and efficient complement as a diagnostic screening tool for disease surveillance in this species, as well and feces of wild boar in order to distinguish between MTBC-positive and MTBC-negative boar
Summary
The presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in wild swine populations, such as in wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Europe [1,2], gives cause for serious concern, regarding the health of affected wild swine populations, and the health of domestic animal species, humans, and other wildlife that share habitats and resources with these populations [3]. Volatile organic compound (VOC) analysis technology is being explored extensively for its potential to detect tuberculosis in humans as well as in other species, such as cattle (Bos taurus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) [4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. Use of these compounds, obtained from various biological samples such as breath and feces, has great potential to fulfill needs for an ideal remote or point-of-care surveillance tool in all species. This study involved collecting breath and fecal VOC from wild boar in Doñana National Park, Andalusia, Spain, to determine whether VOC could aid in distinguishing
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