Tuberculosis caused by Mycobacterium caprae in a camel (Camelus dromedarius)
Investigation article published in BMC Veterinary Research
November 10th, 2020
Background
Animal tuberculosis (TB) is distributed worldwide and has a wide range of wild and domestic reservoirs. Few studies concerning TB in camelids have been published in the last decade, particularly as regards Old World Camelids (OWC), but the increase in reports of TB outbreaks in these species in recent years suggests a high susceptibility to the infection.
Case presentation
We studied a dromedary camel (Camelus dromedarius) herd (n = 24) in which a Mycobacterium caprae infection was detected. The TB infection was confirmed in one animal at necropsy through the detection of TB lesions, mainly in the abdominal organs, and the subsequent isolation of M. caprae (SB0157 spoligotype). The whole herd was additionally tested using cellular and humoral based diagnostic techniques. The intradermal tuberculin test results were compared with those obtained using P22 ELISA for the detection of specific antibodies against the M. tuberculosis complex. The TB infected animal was a positive reactor to both the intradermal tuberculin tests and P22 ELISA, while the others were negative to all the diagnostic tests.
Conclusion
The present study found M. caprae infection in OWC. This is the first report of M. caprae infection in an OWC not living in a zoo. Since the animal was born in the herd and fed with goat’s milk, this practice was suspected to be the potential source of TB infection, which was not confirmed in the other animals present in the herd. Moreover, our results highlight that the intradermal tuberculin test and the P22 ELISA could be valuable tools for the diagnosis of TB in OWC
Infantes-Lorenzo JA., Romero B., Rodriguez-Bertos A., Roy A., Ortega J., de Juan L., Moreno I., Dominguez M., Dominguez L. and Bezos J..
 | Servicio de Inmunología. Centro Nacional de Microbiología (CNM). Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII). |
 | Servicio de Micobacterias (MYC). Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria (VISAVET). Universidad Complutense (UCM). |
| Departamento de Medicina y Cirugía Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM). |
 | BIOFABRI, S.L.. |
| Departamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM). |
Related news in other media:
- Veterinarios detectan tuberculosis en un dromedario del sureste de España - animalshealth.es
