BackgroundBrucellosis is an infectious and contagious zoonotic bacterial disease of both humans and animals. In developing countries where brucellosis is endemic, baseline data on the prevalence of brucellosis, using abattoir facilities, is important.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of antibodies against Brucella in slaughter cattle at Gauteng province, South Africa and to characterize isolates of Brucella spp.MethodsIn this cross‐sectional study, un‐clotted blood samples with corresponding organ tissue samples were collected from slaughtered cattle. Serological [Rose Bengal test (RBT), complement fixation test (CFT) and indirect ELISA (iELISA)], molecular (PCR) and bacteriological methods were used to detect Brucella antibodies and Brucella spp. from 200 slaughtered cattle in 14 abattoirs.ResultsThe RBT revealed a seroprevalence of brucellosis as 11.0% (22 of 200) and iELISA confirmed 5.5% (11 of 200). The estimated seroprevalence from RBT and iELISA was 5.5% while RBT and CFT was 2.0% (4 of 200). Brucella melitensis (n = 6) and B. abortus (n = 5) were isolated from 11 cattle tissues (5.5%) as confirmed to species level with AMOS PCR and differentiated from vaccine strains with Bruce‐ladder PCR. Seven of the 11 isolates originated from seropositive cattle of which five were biotyped as B. abortus bv 1 (n = 2) and B. melitensis bv 2 (n = 1) and B. melitensis bv 3 (n = 2).ConclusionsThis is the first documentation of B. melitensis in cattle in South Africa. The zoonotic risk of brucellosis posed by Brucella‐infected slaughter cattle to abattoir workers and consumers of improperly cooked beef cannot be ignored.

Bovine brucellosis is endemic in Rwanda; however, little information is available on seroprevalence and risk factors. Therefore, a cross-sectional study was conducted among cattle farmed at the wildlife-livestock-human interface (n = 1691) in five districts and one peri-urban district (n = 216). Cattle were screened using the Rose Bengal test, then the results were confirmed by indirect enzyme-linked immunesorbent assay. Potential risk factors were determined with a questionnaire and analyzed for their association with seropositivity. In all districts, the animal and herd-level seroprevalence was 7.4% (141/1907) and 28.9% (61/212), respectively, 8.3% (141/1691) and 30.9% (61/198) at the interface, and 0.0% (0/216) in peri-urban areas. Among the potential risk factors, old age (≥5 years), cattle farmed close to wildlife, herds of cattle and small ruminants, history of abortions, and replacement animals were significantly associated with brucellosis (p < 0.05). Low awareness of zoonotic brucellosis, assisting calving without biosafety protection, drinking raw milk, and manual milking were each observed in more than 21.7% of cattle keepers whose herds were seropositive. This study confirmed brucellosis endemicity in cattle farmed close to wildlife in Rwanda, suggesting the need to focus control efforts in these areas. Educated farmers with a high awareness of zoonotic brucellosis had low bovine brucellosis seropositivity, which emphasizes the importance of education.

A cross sectional sero-epidemiological study was conducted on cattle in a communal farming area adjacent to Kruger National Park at a wildlife-livestock interface in South Africa. A total of 184 cattle were screened for exposure to 5 abortifacient or zoonotic pathogens, namely Coxiella burnetii, Toxoplasma gondii, Chlamydophila abortus, Neospora caninum, and Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. In addition, the virus neutralization test was used to confirm the presence of antibodies to RVFV. The seroprevalence of C. burnetii, T. gondii, C. abortus, N. caninum, and RVFV antibodies was 38.0%, 32.6%, 20.7%, 1.6%, and 0.5%, respectively, and varied between locations (p < 0.001). Seroprevalence of C. burnetii and T. gondii was highly clustered by location (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] = 0.57), and that of C. abortus moderately so (ICC = 0.11). Seroprevalence was not associated with sex or age for any pathogen, except for C. abortus, for which seroprevalence was positively associated with age (p = 0.01). The predominant mixed infections were C. burnetii and T. gondii (15.2%) and C. burnetii, T. gondii, and C. abortus (13.0%). The serological detection of the five abortifacient pathogens in cattle indicates the potential for economic losses to livestock farmers, health impacts to domestic animals, transmission across the livestock-wildlife interface, and the risk of zoonotic transmission. This is the first documentation of T. gondii infection in cattle in South Africa, while exposure to C. burnetii, C. abortus, and N. caninum infections is being reported for the first time in cattle in a wildlife-livestock interface in the country.

Isolation of Brucella melitensis from cattle in South Africa Brucella melitensis is primarily a pathogen found in goats and sheep, but can also be found in cattle. In South Africa, this organism has been responsible for outbreaks of brucellosis in goats, and is also reported to be the cause of brucellosis in people. 1 We are reporting the detection of B melitensis from tissue samples of slaughter cattle from abattoirs in the Gauteng province in South Africa. Two hundred serum and corresponding tissue samples (lymph nodes, spleen and liver) were collected from slaughter cattle between September 2016 and April 2017. Serological tests using the Rose Bengal test (RBT) and indirect ELISA were conducted on the serum samples. The genus-specific 16S-23S rDNA interspacer region (ITS) PCR assay 2 detected Brucella DNA in the tissues of the ELISA positive samples. All ITS-positive tissues

In South Africa, brucellosis testing and record‐keeping are done by several laboratories, thus it is difficult to access any organized data to assess the status of the disease. This study evaluated the seropositivity for brucellosis using Rose Bengal test and complement fixation test in suspect cattle, sheep, goats and pigs sera submitted to Bacterial Serology Laboratory, Agricultural Research Council‐Onderstepoort Veterinary Research (ARC‐OVR) from nine provinces in the country during the period 2007–2015. This retrospective data analysis was conducted to estimate the occurrence of brucellosis in the country from the submitted samples, identify variables that affected seropositivity for brucellosis, investigate existing gaps in data recording and make recommendations on important variables to facilitate better data capture and inferences on brucellosis. Nine years of data were collated and analysed to detect association (seropositivity over time regarding animal species and location). Of the 764,276 animals tested, the distribution of samples was 90.50% (691,539/764,276), 5.19% (39,672/764,276), 3.92% (29,967/764,276) and 0.41% (3,098/764,276) for cattle, sheep, goats and pigs, respectively. The seropositivity for brucellosis by animal species was 6.31% (43,666/691,539, 95% CI: 6.26–6.37), 2.09% (828/39,672, 95% CI: 1.95–2.23), 0.63% (189/29,967, 95% CI: 0.55–0.73) and 0.13% (4/3,098, 95% CI: 0.05–0.33) in cattle, sheep, goats and pigs respectively. The data available did not capture information on the age, sex, breed and other host risk factors that would have been related to seropositivity for brucellosis. The data provide an understanding of the disease occurrence and confirm that brucellosis is enzootic in South Africa. Improved and standardized data collection can be used to pro‐actively drive, monitor, change or formulate policies to mitigate the challenges brought about by brucellosis in the livestock sector in South Africa.

Background Abortions cause tremendous economic losses in food‐producing animals and may lead to food insecurity. Objectives This study aimed to characterize Brucella spp. and other abortigenic pathogens from aborted tissues of cattle. Methods For cattle, aborted tissues (n = 19) were cultured, and Brucella spp. were detected using the genus‐specific 16S‐23S ribosomal DNA interspacer region (ITS) assay and speciated using Brucella abortus, Brucella melitensis, Brucella ovis, and Brucella suis (AMOS) and Bruce‐ladder PCR assays. Brucella negative samples were screened using the eight abortigenic pathogens PCR panel. Samples from an abortion outbreak that occurred within a goat tribe were included in this investigation. Sera of females (n = 8) and males (n = 2) were analyzed using the Rose Bengal Test (RBT) and indirect enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (i‐ELISA), while vaginal swabs (n = 3) and aborted tissues (n = 1) were cultured and characterized. Results The ITS‐PCR detected Brucella DNA in cultures from two aborted tissues of cattle (10.5%, [2/19]), which were identified as B. melitensis (n = 1), and B. abortus (n = 1) using AMOS and Bruce‐ladder PCR assays. Campylobacter fetus (n = 7) and Leptospira spp. (n = 4) including co‐infections (n = 2) of C. fetus and Leptospira spp. were identified from the Brucella negative samples of cattle. Goats (100.0%, 10/10) were brucellosis seropositive on RBT and i‐ELISA. Mixed infections caused by B. melitensis and B. abortus were isolated from the vaginal swabs (n = 3) and aborted tissues (n = 1). Discussion and conclusions This is the first identification of abortion‐associated pathogens in aborted cattle indicating the enormous financial losses and a threat to public health. It is therefore essential to include these identified pathogens in the surveillance scheme of veterinary and human services.

Bovine brucellosis is endemic in Rwanda, although, there is a paucity of documented evidence about the disease in slaughtered cattle. A cross-sectional study was conducted in slaughtered cattle (n = 300) to determine the seroprevalence of anti-Brucella antibodies using the Rose Bengal Test (RBT), and indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (i-ELISA). Corresponding tissues were cultured onto a modified Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria (CITA) selective medium and analysed for Brucella spp. using the 16S-23S ribosomal interspacer region (ITS), AMOS, and Bruce-ladder PCR assays. The seroprevalence was 20.7% (62/300) with RBT, 2.9% (8/300) with i-ELISA, and 2.9% (8/300) using both tests in series. Brucella-specific 16S-23S ribosomal DNA interspace region (ITS) PCR detected Brucella DNA in 5.6% (17/300; Brucella culture prevalence). AMOS-PCR assay identified mixed B. abortus and B. melitensis (n = 3), B. abortus (n = 3) and B. melitensis (n = 5) while Bruce-ladder PCR also identified B. abortus (n = 5) and B. melitensis (n = 6). The gold standard culture method combined with PCR confirmation identified 5.6% Brucella cultures and this culture prevalence is higher than the more sensitive seroprevalence of 2.9%. This emphasizes the need to validate the serological tests in Rwanda. The mixed infection caused by B. abortus and B. melitensis in slaughtered cattle indicates cross-infection and poses a risk of exposure potential to abattoir workers. It is essential to urgently strengthen a coordinated national bovine brucellosis vaccination and initiate a test-and-slaughter program that is not presently applicable in Rwanda.

Background Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is an endemic disease in Rwanda, but little is known about its prevalence and causative mycobacterial species. The disease causes tremendous losses in livestock and wildlife and remains a significant threat to public health. Materials and methods A cross-sectional study employing a systematic random sampling of cattle (n = 300) with the collection of retropharyngeal lymph nodes and tonsils (n = 300) irrespective of granulomatous lesions was carried out in six abattoirs to investigate the prevalence and identify mycobacterial species using culture, acid-fast bacteria staining, polymerase chain reaction, and GeneXpert assay. Individual risk factors and the origin of samples were analysed for association with the prevalence. Findings Of the 300 sample pools, six were collected with visible TB-like lesions. Our findings demonstrated the presence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in 1.7% (5/300) of sampled slaughtered cattle. M. bovis was isolated from 1.3% (4/300) animals while one case was caused by a rifampicin-resistance (RR) M. tuberculosis. Non-tuberculous mycobacteria were identified in 12.0% (36/300) of the sampled cattle. There were no significant associations between the prevalence and abattoir category, age, sex, and breeds of slaughtered cattle. Conclusions This study is the first in Rwanda to isolate both M. bovis and RR M. tuberculosis in slaughtered cattle indicating that bTB is present in Rwanda with a low prevalence. The isolation of RR M. tuberculosis from cattle indicates possible zooanthroponotic transmission of M. tuberculosis and close human-cattle contact. To protect humans against occupational zoonotic diseases, it is essential to control bTB in cattle and raise the awareness among all occupational groups as well as reinforce biosafety at the farm level and in the abattoirs.