Abstract
Brucellosis is a zoonosis occurring worldwide, with economic and public health impacts. Its diagnosis remains a challenge in endemic countries and basically relies on serology. The present study was carried out on two dairy cattle farms allegedly free from brucellosis, but with sporadic cases of abortion. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of Brucella (B.) spp. in uterine discharge of seronegative cows after abortion. In farm I, B. melitensis biovar (bv) 3 was cultured from two of five cows after abortion, while in farm II, B. abortus bv 1 was cultured from three of eleven cows after abortion. These cows had been intrauterinely infected but remained seronegative until abortion and seroconverted only thereafter. Shedding of brucellae in uterine discharge of culture positive/seronegative aborting cows is a serious problem resulting in maintenance and further spread of infection. Thus, serosurveys in endemic countries have to be accompanied by molecular detection and/or culture of aborted material to close the diagnostic window and to hinder uncontrolled spread.
Highlights
Brucellosis is a highly contagious bacterial disease of zoonotic importance causing significant reproductive loss due to high rates of abortion and infertility
The current study was conducted in two dairy cattle farms allegedly free from brucellosis according to the routine periodic examination applied by General Organization of Veterinary Services (GOVS) in two different governorates
The two farms included in this study showed cases of abortion after routine testing with Rose-Bengal Plate Test (RBPT), BAPAT and complement fixation test (CFT) with negative results
Summary
Brucellosis is a highly contagious bacterial disease of zoonotic importance causing significant reproductive loss due to high rates of abortion and infertility. The disease has been reported in cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats, and camels, and Brucella (B.) has been isolated from Nile cat fish and carrier hosts such as dogs and cats [1,2]. Diagnosis of animal brucellosis is still challenging in Egypt and relies on serology using direct agglutination tests. Despite the implementation of a control program, i.e., test-and-slaughter of seropositive animals and vaccination of free herds, the disease is re-emerging in different regions. Despite the effort and money spent on surveillance programs against brucellosis, these seronegative animals hamper the control program and might facilitate spillover in to the environment and spread the disease to susceptible hosts. The aim of the current work was to investigate the presence of Brucella in uterine discharge and fetal fluid from seronegative cows that had aborted
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