Mycobacterium avium subsp. hominissuis infection in two sibling Fjord horses diagnosed using quantitative real time PCR: a case report

This report describes new possibilities for intravital and post mortem diagnosis of avian mycobac - teriosis in horses using the quantitative real time PCR (qPCR) method. Using this method, Mycobacterium avium subsp. hominissuis was diagnosed in two sibling Fjord horses. In the first horse, M. a. hominissuis was detected by qPCR in numbers of 2.89 × 10 5 and 1.47 × 10 4 cells per 1 g of intestinal content and mesenteric lymph nodes, respectively; in the second horse, faeces and mesenteric lymph node samples showed numbers of 6.31 × 10 5 and 3.36 × 10 6 cells per 1tissue, respectively. Another aim of this study was to comprehensively describe clinical