title: Serological diagnosis of bovine brucellosis using B. melitensis strain B115.
abstract: Bovine brucellosis is diagnosed by official tests, such as Rose Bengal plate test (RBPT) and Complement Fixation test (CFT). Both tests detect antibodies directed against the lipolysaccharide (LPS) of Brucella cell wall. Despite their good sensitivity, those tests do not discriminate between true positive and false positive serological reactions (FPSR), the latter being generated by animals infected with other Gram negative microorganisms that share components of Brucella LPS. In this study, an antigenic extract from whole Brucella melitensis B115 strain was used to set up an ELISA assay for the serological diagnosis of bovine brucellosis. A total of 148 serum samples from five different groups of animals were tested: Group A: 28 samples from two calves experimentally infected with Yersinia enterocolitica O:9; Group B: 30 samples from bovines infected with Brucella abortus; Group C: 50 samples from brucellosis-free herds; Group D: 20 samples RBPT positive and CFT negative; Group E: 20 samples both RBPT and CFT positive. Group D and Group E serum samples were from brucellosis-free herds. Positive reactions were detected only by RBPT and CFT in calves immunized with Y. enterocolitica O:9. Sera from Group B animals tested positive also in the ELISA assay, whereas sera from the remaining groups were all negative. The results obtained encourage the use of the ELISA assay to implement the serological diagnosis of brucellosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Strada Provinciale per Casamassima km.3, 70010, Valenzano, BA, Italy. Electronic address: marialaura.corrente@uniba.it.
authors.forename: Marialaura
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Corrente
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Strada Provinciale per Casamassima km.3, 70010, Valenzano, BA, Italy.
authors.forename: Costantina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Desario
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico della Puglia e Basilicata, Via Chiancolla, c.da San Pietro Piturno, 70017, Putignano, BA, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Strada Provinciale per Casamassima km.3, 70010, Valenzano, BA, Italy.
authors.forename: Erika
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Grandolfo
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico della Puglia e Basilicata, Via Manfredonia, 20, 71121, Foggia, Italy.
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Scaltrito
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico della Sicilia, Via Gino Marinuzzi, 3, 90129 Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: Gesualdo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vesco
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Strada Provinciale per Casamassima km.3, 70010, Valenzano, BA, Italy.
authors.forename: Valeriana
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Colao
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Strada Provinciale per Casamassima km.3, 70010, Valenzano, BA, Italy.
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Buonavoglia
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D017347:Brucella melitensis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002006:Brucellosis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial
keywords: Bovine brucellosis; Brucella strain B115; False positive serological reactions