The objective of this study is to understand The presence of circulating antigen in cattle experimentally infected with Mycobacterium bovis was demonstrated using dual-path platform (DPP) technology. The antigen capture immunoassays employed rabbit polyclonal antibody recognizing predominantly M. tuberculosis complex-specific epitopes and were able to detect soluble substances and whole cells of mycobacteria. The data correlation analyses supported the idea of the role of IgM responses in antigen persistence during M. bovis infection. The antigen was detectable in serum months prior to detectable antibody seroconversion. This proof-of-concept study suggested the potential for improved immunodiagnostics for bovine tuberculosis. Antigen detection in blood and alternative biological fluids has long been explored as an attractive diagnostic approach. The presence of pathogen-derived substances and/or circulating immune complexes (CIC) has been demonstrated in viral, bacterial, fungal, and parasitic infections. Commercial products have been developed for direct antigen detection in a variety of human infectious diseases, such as malaria, influenza, tuberculosis (TB), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, hepatitis B virus infection, and dengue fever , as well as in many animal infections, including equine influenza, porcine epidemic diarrhea, canine or feline heartworm, feline leukemia, and feline immunodeficiency virus infection . However we conclude that no blood-based antigen detection test is available for Mycobacterium bovis infection.
Reference link- https://cvi.asm.org/content/24/6/e00069-17
