Of. Thoresen et al., COMPARISON OF IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY, ACID-FAST STAINING, AND CULTIVATION FOR DETECTION OF MYCOBACTERIUM-PARATUBERCULOSIS IN GOATS, Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation, 6(2), 1994, pp. 195-199
Forty-seven paired specimens of ileum and mesenterial lymph nodes from
goats originating from 2 herds with paratuberculosis were investigate
d. Culture of the specimens for Mycobacterium paratuberculosis was com
pared with Ziehl-Neelsen staining and with immunohistochemical tests o
n paraffin-embedded tissue sections, using a M. paratuberculosis immun
e serum and an avidin-biotin-alkaline phosphatase method. Immunohistoc
hemical techniques detected most positive samples and produced more cl
early visible reactions than did acid-fast staining. Eighteen of 47 sa
mples were positive by immunohistochemical methods, whereas 15 and 10
were positive for acid-fast staining and culture, respectively. Immuno
histochemical techniques may represent a valuable adjunct to standard
techniques for diagnosis of paratuberculosis in goats.