Immunopathogenesis and Diagnostics to Control Tuberculosis in Cattle and Wildlife

Dear Colleagues,

Mycobacterium bovis has the broadest host range of any member of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex. It is the cause of tuberculosis in most mammals, including humans, in whom it can cause disease which is clinically indistinguishable from that caused by M. tuberculosis, the more common cause of human tuberculosis. Due to both human and animal health concerns, many countries initiated bovine tuberculosis eradication programs in the early to mid-20th century. In spite of long-standing and expensive programs, eradication remains elusive, in part due to wildlife reservoirs of M. bovis. Although tuberculosis likely spilled over into wildlife from cattle, in many locations, it is now spilling back into cattle from wildlife. Generally accepted wildlife reservoirs are the European badger (Meles meles) in the UK and Republic of Ireland, the brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) in New Zealand, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in the US, wild boar (Sus scrofa) in the Iberian Peninsula, and Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) in Africa. Numerous other wildlife species are susceptible, including some endangered species such as the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardina) and African wild dog (Lycaon pictus).

Notwithstanding advances in the understanding bovine tuberculosis, the century-old tuberculin skin test, with some modifications, remains the preferred method of diagnosis in many countries. Blood-based assays, such as interferon-gamma release assays, complement skin testing but are not rapid, nor inexpensive, and lack the sensitivity and specificity necessary for a stand-alone test. Much remains unknown about the process of disease development in cattle and wildlife, especially the immune response and how this response can be used to develop improved diagnostic assays.

Key questions remain around the definition of a successful, protective immune response, as well as correlates of protection. Critical interactions between host and pathogen occur at the level of the granuloma, the lesion which exemplifies tuberculosis. Can responses measured in blood tell us what is happening at the host–pathogen interface of the granuloma? How can we examine what is happening at this interface?

This Special Issue of Pathogens is focused on the immunopathogenesis and diagnosis of M. bovis infection in cattle, the eponymous host species, and the many susceptible wildlife species, especially those that may serve as maintenance hosts and reservoirs of disease. We invite you to submit primary research articles and review articles representing recent advances in our knowledge of tuberculosis immunopathogenesis and diagnosis in the numerous affected host species.

Dr. Mitchell V. Palmer
Dr. Paola M. Boggiatto
Dr. Carly Kanipe
Guest Editors

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