Seropositivity, Comparison Between the Efficiency of Serological Tests and Risk Factors of Brucella Infection in Small Ruminants with History of Abortion in the Afar Region of North-Eastern Ethiopia

Muluken Tekle; Mengistu Legesse; Gezahegne Mamo

doi:10.2147/VMRR.S446714

Seropositivity, Comparison Between the Efficiency of Serological Tests and Risk Factors of Brucella Infection in Small Ruminants with History of Abortion in the Afar Region of North-Eastern Ethiopia

Vet Med (Auckl). 2023 Dec 31:14:245-252. doi: 10.2147/VMRR.S446714. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Muluken Tekle¹, Mengistu Legesse², Gezahegne Mamo¹

Affiliations

¹ College of Veterinary Medicine and Agriculture, Addis Ababa University, Bishoftu, Ethiopia.
² Aklilu Lemma Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Abstract

Purpose: Brucellosis is one of the most important reproductive diseases that cause abortion and breeding failure in small ruminants in Ethiopia. Therefore, our objective was to detect the seropositivity and risk factors of Brucella infection in small ruminants with history of abortion using modified RBPT, cELISA, and CFT in the Amibara district of the Afar Region, Ethiopia.

Methods: Sera were collected from 226 animals (195 goats and 31ewes) and assessed for seropositivity of Brucella infection using modified RBPT, CFT, and competitive ELISA.

Results: The overall seroprevalence was 12.0% (27 out of 226), 7.5% (17 out of 226), and 26.5% (60 out of 226) by mRBPT, CFT, and cELISA, respectively. Out of 27 sera that were reactive by mRBPT, 17 (63.0%) were also reactive by (CFT). Out of the 17 sera that were reactive by CFT and mRBPT, 14 (82.4%) were reactive by cELISA. Out of the 29 sera that were non-reactive by both mRBPT and CFT, 10 (34.5%) were found reactive by cELISA. Out of the 226 sera that were tested by both mRBPT and cELISA, 20 (8.9%) were reactive by both tests, while 159 (70.4%) were non-reactive by both tests. The percentage of test agreement (79.2%) between mRBPT and cELISA was poor (k=0.353). High seropositivity for Brucella infection was significantly associated with the presence of retained placenta in the studied animals (adjusted OR=2.2, 95% CI, 1.1-4.4, P=0.030) as detected by cELISA.

Conclusion: The current study revealed that a cELISA-based seroepidemiological survey increases the likelihood of detecting individuals with brucellosis and provides reliable evidence for mRBPT. Furthermore, there was a significant association between seropositivity for Brucella infection and retained placenta. These findings emphasize the necessity for proactive measures to reduce the economic impact of brucellosis and mitigate the risk of zoonotic transmission.

Keywords: abortion; brucellosis; seropositivity; small ruminants.

Grants and funding

This Study was financially supported by a collaborative research project entitled “Integrated Community and Health facility-based study of brucellosis in Pastoralists and their livestock in Afar Regional State of Ethiopia” between ALIPB and CVMA of Addis Ababa University funded by the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM-Belgium) No: 1123/2016. The funding organization had no any role in the design of the study and collection, analysis, and interpretation of data and in writing the manuscript.