title: Detection of early secretory antigenic target-6 antibody for diagnosis of tuberculosis in non-human primates.
abstract: Tuberculosis is one of the most economically devastating, zoonotic infections of captive non-human primates. The limitations of the tuberculin skin test, which is currently used to diagnose tuberculosis in living non-human primates, make it necessary to find new, simple, and economical diagnostic methods. We describe use of an enzyme-linked immunoassay to detect IgG antibodies against early secretory antigenic target (ESAT)-6, a small protein secreted by virulent tubercle bacilli, in paired (pre- and post-outbreak) sera from 57 non-human primates involved in an outbreak of Mycobacterium bovis infection in a research colony. Of 25 animals with tuberculosis lesions at necropsy, 22 (88%) had high serum levels of the ESAT-6 antibody. The ESAT-6 antibody was found in 16% (5/32) of post-outbreak sera from animals in which tuberculosis could not be confirmed at necropsy. The strong association between the ESAT-6 antibody and tuberculosis in non-human primates documented in this study, together with the robustness of the serologic assay, make the ESAT-6 ELISA a valuable tool for diagnosis of tuberculosis in captive non-human primates.
authors.affiliation: Public Health Research Institute, 225 Warren Street, Newark, New Jersey 07103, USA.
authors.forename: Ganga V
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Kanaujia
authors.forename: Manuel A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.forename: Donna M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Bouley
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Peters
authors.forename: Maria Laura
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Gennaro
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000662:veterinary; D005260:Female; D008252:Macaca fascicularis; D008297:Male; D008992:Monkey Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000276:immunology*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012698:Serologic Tests / Q000662:veterinary; D012882:Skin Tests / Q000662:veterinary; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000662:veterinary*
chemical_list: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C093276:ESAT-6 protein, Mycobacterium tuberculosis; C072681:Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigens