title: Performance of a Noninvasive Test for Detecting Mycobacterium bovis Shedding in European Badger (Meles meles) Populations.
abstract: The incidence of Mycobacterium bovis, the causative agent of bovine tuberculosis, in cattle herds in the United Kingdom is increasing, resulting in substantial economic losses. The European badger (Meles meles) is implicated as a wildlife reservoir and is the subject of control measures aimed at reducing the incidence of infection in cattle populations. Understanding the epidemiology of M. bovis in badger populations is essential for directing control interventions and understanding disease spread; however, accurate diagnosis in live animals is challenging and currently uses invasive methods. Here we present a noninvasive diagnostic procedure and sampling regimen using field sampling of latrines and detection of M. bovis with quantitative PCR tests, the results of which strongly correlate with the results of immunoassays in the field at the social group level. This method allows M. bovis infections in badger populations to be monitored without trapping and provides additional information on the quantities of bacterial DNA shed. Therefore, our approach may provide valuable insights into the epidemiology of bovine tuberculosis in badger populations and inform disease control interventions.
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom Warwick Infectious Disease Epidemiology Research, University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom hayley.king@warwick.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Hayley C
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9010-8020
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: King
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Phillip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: James
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Travis
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Porter
authors.affiliation: Animal and Plant Health Agency Weybridge, Addlestone, Surrey, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sawyer
authors.affiliation: Animal and Plant Health Agency Weybridge, Addlestone, Surrey, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cork
authors.affiliation: National Wildlife Management Centre, Animal and Plant Health Agency, Woodchester Park, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Delahay
authors.affiliation: European Centre for Environmental and Human Health, University of Exeter Medical School, Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Gaze
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom Warwick Infectious Disease Epidemiology Research, University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Orin
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Courtenay
authors.affiliation: University of Warwick, School of Life Sciences, Gibbet Hill Campus, Coventry, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Elizabeth M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Wellington
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D057138:Bacterial Shedding; D002417:Cattle; D004197:Disease Reservoirs; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D045969:Mustelidae / Q000382:microbiology*; D009163:Mycobacterium bovis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology