Abstract
The control of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is at a critical point in the last stage of eradication in livestock. Wildlife species recently have emerged infected with TB in Europe, particularly ungulates in the Iberian Peninsula. Epidemiological information regarding TB in wild ungulates including affected species, prevalence, associated risk factors and appropriate diagnostic methods need to be obtained in these countries.A cross-sectional study was carried out on wild artiodactyl species, including Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa) red deer (Cervus elaphus), roe deer (Capraelus capraelus), fallow deer (Dama dama), Spanish ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica) and mouflon (Ovis musimon), in Spain to assess the seroprevalence against Mycobacterium bovis or cross-reacting members of the Mycobcaterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), and to provide information on associated risk factors. Previously, two in-house indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (bPPD-ELISA and MPB83-ELISA) were developed using known TB status sera. Positive reference sera were selected from infected animals confirmed by culture. The M. bovis isolates belonged to spoligotypes SB0121, SB0120, SB0295, SB0265 and SB0134. Two hundred and two out of 1367 (7.5%; 95% CI: 6.1–8.9) animals presented antibodies against M. bovis by both bPPD-ELISA and MPB83-ELISA. Significantly higher TB seroprevalence was observed in wild boar compared to the other species analyzed. Interestingly, seropositivity against M. bovis was not found in any out of 460 Spanish ibex analyzed. The logistic regression model for wild boar indicated that the seropositivity to M. bovis was associated with age, location and year of sampling, while the only risk factor associated with M. bovis seroprevalence in red deer and fallow deer was the age. The seroprevalence observed indicates a widespread exposure to MTBC in several wild artiodactyl species in southern Spain, which may have important implications not only for conservation but also for animal and public health.
Highlights
Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium bovis, a member of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), is an infectious disease worldwide extended in a large rank of hosts including humans, livestock and wildlife [1]
Seven sera were negative by bovis purified protein derivative (bPPD)-enzyme linked assays (ELISA) but showed positive results by both MPB83 ELISA and mycobacterial isolation, and were considered positive samples
Fifty-one samples not analyzed by mycobacterial isolation, showed negative results using bPPD-ELISA but positive results using MPB83-ELISA, while 13 samples were positive by bPPD-ELISA but negative by MPB83-ELISA
Summary
Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium bovis, a member of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), is an infectious disease worldwide extended in a large rank of hosts including humans, livestock and wildlife [1]. Intensive management measures in hunting areas influence the population dynamics and the behavior of the animals, promoting their aggregation, facilitating contact between individuals and favouring, the transmission of diseases among wildlife and livestock species [5]. In this sense, epidemiological, pathological and microbiological evidence strongly suggests that wild ungulates, predominantly wild boar (Sus scrofa) and red deer (Cervus elaphus), act as true TB wildlife reservoirs in the Mediterranean ecosystem [6,7,8,9,10]
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