title: Use of mycobacterial peptides and recombinant proteins for the diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis in skin test-positive cattle.
abstract: More accurate tests are required to test cattle which have reacted positively in the tuberculin skin test. For this purpose, a range of mycobacterial antigens, MPB59, MPB64, MPB70, MPB83, ESAT-6 and CFP10, were used either as recombinant proteins or as synthetic peptides in the whole blood interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) test. Groups of uninfected cattle with typical 'non-specificity' problems were targeted, in particular animals with skin tuberculosis, animals vaccinated against Johne's disease and animals that were positive in the standard purified protein derivative (PPD)-based IFN-gamma test. The two study groups consisted of 74 Mycobacterium bovis-culture positive animals and 72 uninfected animals, all of which tested positive in the caudal fold tuberculin skin test eight to 28 days before the blood test. The use of combinations of ESAT-6 and CFP10 antigens, either as recombinant proteins or peptides, detected similar percentages of M bovis-infected animals as the PPD-based IFN-gamma test, but produced significantly fewer false positive reactions. The PPD-based IFN-gamma test was very effective in differentiating animals vaccinated against Johne's disease that were skin-test positive from those with bovine tuberculosis, and the use of PPD or specific mycobacterial antigens minimised the number of false positive reactions in animals with skin tuberculosis.
authors.affiliation: AgResearch, Wallaceville Animal Research Centre, PO Box 40063, Upper Hutt, New Zealand.
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Buddle
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: McCarthy
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Ryan
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Pollock
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Vordermeier
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Hewinson
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Andersen
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: de Lisle
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D002417:Cattle; D007371:Interferon-gamma; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009163:Mycobacterium bovis / Q000276:immunology; D009520:New Zealand; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012882:Skin Tests / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D014380:Tuberculosis, Bovine / Q000175:diagnosis*
chemical_list: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D007371:Interferon-gamma