Mycobacterium bovis infections in domesticated non-bovine mammalian species. Part 2: A review of diagnostic methods

Abstract

Despite the large host range of Mycobacterium bovis, ante-mortem diagnostic tests for the infection mostly lack sensitivity/specificity and/or remain unvalidated in non-bovine species. The epidemiology and importance of M. bovis infection in these species are discussed in the first part of this two-part review. This second part focuses on the diagnostic options available to identify infected species such as sheep, goats, dogs, cats, and camelids, and highlights the significant challenges posed, both in establishing estimates of disease prevalence and in controlling infections in these species, in the absence of fully validated tests.

Keywords: Bovine tuberculosis; Camelid; Cat; Diagnosis; Dog; Goat; Mycobacterium bovis; Pig; Sheep.