Abstract
BackgroundClinical cases of Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, a zoonotic gram-positive bacterium, have been reported in many ruminant species, including in cattle, deer, moose and muskoxen. Fatal cases have been repeatedly reported in cattle over the years but to date there is only one Japanese study investigating the seroprevalence of this bacterium in cattle using the growth agglutination test (GAT). This technique is subjective, time-consuming, expensive and hazardous compared to modern serological tests such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) or the newly developed fluorescent microbead-based immunoassays (FMIA).ResultsThe FMIA based on the surface protein SpaA (rSpaA415) antigen of E. rhusiopathiae developed in this study had an almost perfect agreement with the GAT (k = 0.83) and showed a sensitivity of 89.7% and a specificity of 92.9% when compared to the GAT. Overall, detection rates of E. rhusiopathiae antibody positive samples were 13.8% (51/370) in British herds and 6% (12/200) in US herds. Positive cattle were present in 34.3% (24/70) of the investigated British farms and in 34.7% (8/23) of the US farms with an on-farm prevalence of 7.1 to 100% for the British farms and 8.3–30% for the US farms.ConclusionsFMIA is a fast, safe and economic alternative to the GAT for the diagnosis of E. rhusiopathiae in cattle. This work is the first seroprevalence study of E. rhusiopathiae in healthy farmed cattle in Great Britain and the US and revealed that infection occurs at a low level. Further investigations to evaluate risks of zoonotic transmission when handling cattle are needed.
Highlights
Clinical cases of Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, a zoonotic gram-positive bacterium, have been reported in many ruminant species, including in cattle, deer, moose and muskoxen
The fluorescent microbead-based immunoassays (FMIA) had an area under the curve (AUC) of 94.8% indicating a high accuracy of the test
FMIA was preferred because it was more accurate, sensitive, specific, and easy to operate than the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and was selected to test the remaining field samples
Summary
Clinical cases of Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, a zoonotic gram-positive bacterium, have been reported in many ruminant species, including in cattle, deer, moose and muskoxen. Fatal cases have been repeatedly reported in cattle over the years but to date there is only one Japanese study investigating the seroprevalence of this bacterium in cattle using the growth agglutination test (GAT). This technique is subjective, time-consuming, expensive and hazardous compared to modern serological tests such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) or the newly developed fluorescent microbead-based immunoassays (FMIA). Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae has been associated with unusual mortality events in muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus wardi) in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago [12]. In Canada, the death of three elks (Alces alces) was linked to a septicaemia caused by Erysipelothrix of serotype 17 [15]
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