Development of a Gene Expression Assay for the Diagnosis ofMycobacterium bovisInfection in African Lions (Panthera leo)

Abstract

Mycobacterium bovis infection, the cause of bovine tuberculosis (BTB), is endemic in wildlife in the Kruger National Park (KNP), South Africa. In lions, a high infection prevalence and BTB mortalities have been documented in the KNP; however, the ecological consequences of this disease are currently unknown. Sensitive assays for the detection of this infection in this species are therefore required. Blood from M. bovis-exposed, M. bovis-unexposed, M. tuberculosis-exposed and M. bovis-infected lions was incubated in QuantiFERON -TB Gold (QFT) tubes containing either saline or ESAT-6/CFP-10 peptides. Using qPCR, selected reference genes were evaluated for expression stability in these samples and selected target genes were evaluated as markers of antigen-dependent immune activation. The abundance of monokine induced by gamma interferon (MIG/CXCL9) mRNA, measured in relation to that of YWHAZ, was used as a marker of ESAT-6/CFP-10 sensitization. The gene expression assay results were compared between lion groups, and lenient and stringent diagnostic cut-off values were calculated. This CXCL9 gene expression assay combines a highly specific stimulation platform with a sensitive diagnostic marker that allows for discrimination between M. bovis-infected and M. bovis-uninfected lions.

African Lions and Zoonotic Diseases: Implications for Commercial Lion Farms in South Africa

“…Pathogenic organisms (categorized into bacteria, parasites, and viruses) specified in the 148 papers in the dataset. Associated diseases and clinical symptoms recorded in the 148 papers in the dataset.DiseasesBabesiosis[54]; bovine tuberculosis[29,30,[32][33][34]37,47,52,62,64,71,[97][98][99]; echinococcosis…”

Tuberculosis research in South Africa over the past 30 years: From bench to bedside

“…[101,102] Research in a wide variety of animals including African wild dogs, African lions, antelope such as the greater kudu ( Fig. 5), warthogs, hyenas and domestic livestock [103][104][105][106] has drawn the attention of not only the Wildlife Ranching Association of SA, but also that of various private international zoos. We provide ongoing assistance to DAFF, SANParks, the National Zoological Gardens and others, such as the Namibian Wildlife Service, regarding TB in wild and domestic animals.…”

Applying the One Health Concept to Mycobacterial Research – Overcoming Parochialism

“…Mycobacterium bovis is also a well‐documented zoonotic agent, is highly virulent in both animals and humans and has a worldwide distribution. It principally affects the family Bovidae including buffaloes, bison, antelopes, goats and sheep but can also cause disease in other mammals such as pigs, horses, camels and wildlife as well as pet animals like dogs and cats (Thoen et al., ; Melinda et al., ; Rodwell et al., ; Drewe et al., ; Gowtage‐Sequeira et al., ; Shrikrishna et al., ; Chambers et al., ; Park et al., ; Lyashchenko et al., ; Greene, ; Olivier et al., ). In the United Kingdom, M. bovis is endemic in the wild badger population with spillover into farm animals, especially cow herds.…”