Sero-prevalence and Molecular Detection of Brucella species in Slaughter Pigs (Sus scrofa) of Punjab, India

Huge losses have been reported due to brucellosis in livestock populations of the country. However, limited studies have been carried out on porcine brucellosis in India. As far as we are aware, this is the first epidemiologic study carried out to determine Brucella species circulating in naturally infected pigs (Sus scrofa) in Punjab, India. The blood samples were collected from 330 pigs slaughtered in small slaughter shops located in 5 districts of Punjab state of India. The samples were screened using Rose Bengal Plate test (RBPT), Standard tube agglutination test (STAT) and ELISA. For molecular identification, conventional PCR was employed on all the seropositive and 30 negative samples. Nine (2.72%), eight (2.42%) and ten (3.03%) samples were found positive using RBPT, STAT and ELISA, respectively. Out of 10 seropositive samples, 4 were found positive using conventional PCR. The results indicate that pigs are infected with Brucella species and policies must be developed for prevention and control of brucellosis in the country.