Review on Diagnostic Techniques of Bovine Tuberculosis in Ethiopia

Bovine tuberculosis is a major infectious disease of cattle, other domesticated animals and certain wildlife populations. It is one of the zoonotic diseases and can be diagnosed with different techniques. The currently used techniques are acid fast staining which is a cost-effective tool for diagnosing tuberculosis case and to monitor the progress of treatment and it has also drawbacks such as the low sensitivity in the immune-suppressed individuals; Immunological diagnostic techniques like tuberculin skin tests: Single Intradermal Test, Comparative Intradermal Test, Short Thermal Test and Stormont Test; Blood based diagnostic techniques like gamma interferon assays, Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays and Lymphocyte Proliferation Assay, Culture of Mycobacterium and Molecular diagnostic techniques which involves Polymerase Chain Reaction, is a method that allows direct identification of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex. Spoligotyping, Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism, Variable Number Tandem Repeats typing are the techniques used for concurrent detection and typing of mycobacterium species at strain level. Its clinical usefulness over the other techniques is determined by its rapidity, both in identifying causative bacteria and in providing molecular epidemiologic information on strains. However, it holds drawbacks of being expensive, and requiring well-equipped laboratory and skilled laboratory personnel, which are not always available in endemic areas. Thus, both conventional and molecular tools should be effectively used to diagnosis Tuberculosis. (Tadesse Birhanu , Ebisa Mezgebu , Eyasu Ejeta and Ayele Gizachew. Review on Diagnostic Techniques of Bovine Tuberculosis in Ethiopia. Rep Opinion 2015;7(1):7-14). (ISSN: 1553-9873). http://www.sciencepub.net/report . 2