Comparative study among complement fixation, serum agglutination and Rose Bengal plate tests in the serodiagnosis of bovine brucellosis.

The complement fixation test (CFT) based on the 50 per cent hemolytic end point technique was applied to the diagnosis of bovine brucellosis in a comparative study involving the plate agglutination test (PAT), the tube agglutination test (TAT) and the Rose Bengal plate test (RBPT). Among 180 bovine sera that were examined the CFT was able to reveal significant titres in sera that gave low agglutinating titres. Some sera with agglutinating titres between 1 in 50 and 1 in 100 did not give a titre in the CFT. The results show that the CFT is useful for bovine brucellosis diagnosis and may be used after sera screening with PAT and RBPT.