Friedrich Loeffler Institute, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses, Naumburger Strasse 96a, 07743 Jena, Germany.
BMC Vet Res. 2011 Jan 19;7:4. doi: 10.1186/1746-6148-7-4.
The in vivo diagnosis of glanders relies on the highly sensitive complement fixation test (CFT). Frequently observed false positive results are troublesome for veterinary authorities and cause financial losses to animal owners. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop a test with high specificity. Hence, a Western blot assay making use of a partly purified lipopolysaccaride (LPS) containing antigen of three Burkholderia mallei strains was developed. The test was validated investigating a comprehensive set of positive and negative sera obtained from horses and mules from endemic and non endemic areas.
The developed Western blot assay showed a markedly higher diagnostic specificity when compared to the prescribed CFT and therefore can be used as a confirmatory test. However, the CFT remains the test of choice for routine testing of glanders due to its high sensitivity, its feasibility using standard laboratory equipment and its worldwide distribution in diagnostic laboratories.
The CFT should be amended by the newly validated Western blot to increase the positive likelihood ratio of glanders serodiagnosis in non endemic areas or areas with low glanders prevalence. Its use for international trade of horses and mules should be implemented by the OIE.
马鼻疽的体内诊断依赖于高度敏感的补体结合试验（CFT）。兽医当局经常观察到假阳性结果，这给他们带来了困扰，并给动物主人造成了经济损失。因此，迫切需要开发一种特异性高的检测方法。因此，开发了一种利用含有三种鼻疽伯克霍尔德氏菌菌株的部分纯化脂多糖（LPS）的 Western blot 检测法。该检测方法通过对来自疫区和非疫区的马和骡子的一系列全面的阳性和阴性血清进行验证。
与规定的 CFT 相比，所开发的 Western blot 检测法显示出明显更高的诊断特异性，因此可作为确认检测法使用。然而，由于其高灵敏度、使用标准实验室设备的可行性以及在诊断实验室中的全球分布，CFT 仍然是常规检测马鼻疽的首选检测方法。
应通过新验证的 Western blot 对 CFT 进行修正，以提高非疫区或低马鼻疽流行地区马鼻疽血清诊断的阳性似然比。OIE 应实施该检测方法用于马和骡子的国际贸易。
